(Final episode)
Majesty.
What are you doing in front of a subject?
What you are doing hurts both of our dignity, Majesty.
Is keeping your dignity more important...
than saving an innocent person's life?
Are you not afraid of the skies looking down on you...
but afraid of the subject watching you?
Majesty!
You know the Chief State Councilor is not guilty, Your Highness.
Why are you trying to kill...
an innocent person?
The King must do bad things if necessary.
If millions of people can live happily by killing one royal relative,
you need to do that as the King.
The King loses his right if he does that.
What?
The King has to save millions of people...
without having to kill any innocent people.
If he can save the rest by killing one person,
he cannot be king.
I will take care of this matter myself.
I will interrogate Kang Sang In myself,
and find out if he is guilty or not.
And I will prove that Chief State Councilor is innocent.
(Chief State Councilor, the official name of King Sejong's father-in-law, Shim On)
As long as I am King,
there will be no killing of innocent subjects.
Then I will drag you down from the throne.
If you keep stopping me,
I will withdraw the abdication,
and take the throne back myself.
Your Highness.
If you are willing to give up the throne, you may stop me.
If you give up your throne,
I will not have to kill Councilor Shim anymore.
Choose.
Will you give up the throne for your father-in-law?
Will you give up your dream as the King for your in-laws' safety?
Tell me. What kind of a person are you?
What is more important to you?
Which do you wish to keep more?
- Eunuch Yoon. - Yes, Your Majesty.
I need to ask you to do something.
Yes, please do.
(Park Eun, Left State Councilor)
Behead the criminal.
Yes, sir!
I am innocent!
You should ride your horses and go to the border quickly.
If you see Chief State Councilor Shim On,
arrest him and transfer him to the Department of Justice.
- Yes, sir. - Yes, sir.
(Department of Justice, a judicial agency...)
(which deals with treasons or being against humanity.)
Transfer him?
My father would not do such a thing.
You know he is not the kind to commit such a thing, Your Majesty.
(King Sejong, Lee Do)
Why are you not saying anything?
Did you not promise me?
You promised that you would keep my family safe.
Your Majesty.
Your Majesty!
Is that true?
Yes, it's His Majesty's request.
Please stay in Ming for a while.
You should never come back to Joseon.
Please get on the horse now.
Go to Ming now, please.
I cannot do that.
It means that I admit of the guilt.
I cannot make Her Highness...
the daughter of a criminal.
I would rather go back to the Capital,
and prove that I am not guilty.
Lord Shim.
The man who mentioned your name is already beheaded.
Even if you go back, you cannot prove your innocence.
Lord Shim, come on.
Your Majesty.
Yes. How did it go?
Did he cross the border safely?
I am sorry.
Chief State Councilor was heading back to the Capital...
and was transferred to the Department of Justice.
- What? - He said he cannot make Her Highness...
the daughter of a runaway criminal.
My gosh!
I am innocent!
Are you going to hurt...
the family of Her Highness, too?
The Queen of Joseon...
(Queen Dowager Min, the wife of Lee Bang Won)
shouldn't have parents or siblings?
Must all queens of Joseon...
sprout from the ground?
Whatever I say,
I know you will do as you wish.
Even so,
you should remember one thing.
You are...
driving a stake through your own heart.
Until you die,
you will never be free of the shackles you put on yourself.
I will leave you now.
Return to the Palace.
I will send someone to get you.
I am not asking you to stay with me.
Stay with the King.
I think...
we should not have...
become in-laws with the Lee clan.
It was all my fault.
I should have...
made sure my sons would stay put.
If I had,
they would all still be alive.
Do not cry.
It was not your fault, Mother.
However cautious my brothers were,
they would have eventually lost their lives.
That is what His Highness is like.
We were not aware of that.
(Lady Song, Lee Bang Won's mother-in-law)
Had we known,
this would not have happened.
Your Highness...
How is the torture going?
What are they doing to him now?
They are crushing his knees.
(The guilty kneels on pieces of crock and a heavy stone is put in his lap.)
If one is flogged three times...
and still does not confess,
only then are his knees crushed.
Why are they starting off by crushing his knees?
Councilor Choi.
Yes, Your Majesty.
Relay my message to the chief state councilor.
Tell him...
to confess.
Tell him...
he can never escape this.
Tell him...
no one can stop this.
Tell him...
he must free himself from the pain.
Yes, Your Majesty. I will tell him so.
It is His Majesty's ardent plea.
You must confess.
Why must I...
suffer through this?
I cannot answer that.
Your crime...
would be that your clan is powerful.
My lord.
Confess.
Do as His Majesty asks.
The guilty was displeased that...
the abdicated king was in charge of the army.
He instigated Vice Minister of War Kang Sang In...
and committed treason by preventing the reports reach His Highness.
For this, Shim On is commanded to take his own life.
Your Highness.
Traitor Shim On's siblings and their offspring...
are to be exiled.
Shim On's wife, mistress, and their offspring...
are to be made slaves of the government!
Take them!
- Yes, sir! - Yes, sir!
Let me go.
- Come along. - Let go!
- Walk!
- My lady. - Mother!
It was all for your sake.
I got blood on my hands so you would not have to.
I will do all that is evil.
You just have to...
focus on caring for the people.
Become a wise and sage king and bring peace and prosperity.
I believe you can do so.
Why will you not say anything?
You ask me to be a sage king on a throne built upon...
the bodies of the innocent?
Your Majesty.
You want me to bring peace and prosperity...
at the expense of the blood and lives of many?
Yes.
I will do so.
I will become a sage king and bring peace and prosperity.
But...
I will not do so because you ask of me.
I will do so to prove your ways are wrong.
Now excuse me.
You will come to understand me one day.
Give up on that hope.
That will never happen.
If I come to understand you,
that will mean I have become just like you.
Shim On's crimes were brought to light.
Abolish his daughter the Queen...
and bring back order and authority to the Royal Family.
What?
Your Majesty. The daughter of a traitor...
cannot remain Queen.
Please accept our plea!
Did the Queen engage in high treason?
No, she did not.
Then was the Queen born as the child of a traitor?
But did she hide that fact and become queen?
Then why are you demanding that the Queen take responsibility?
Your Majesty. The royal family...
must set an example for the people.
But how can you allow the daughter of a criminal to live inside the Palace?
I am extremely worried as to what the people might think...
when they see this.
Are you suggesting that by kicking the mother of my children out...
and making them cry out in pain, I would be setting a good example?
Do you really think that the people would look up to such a family?
What kind of people are you?
Do you really have no idea what the truth behind this incident is?
When the King takes the wrong path,
it is the duty of his subjects to risk their lives to stop him.
However, what are you doing?
You pushed aside justice, ignored reason,
and all you keep saying is to kill like a bunch of lunatics!
Is that really your duty as subjects?
From this day forward, if you wish to petition for the deposing of the Queen,
bring grounds for an argument that I can accept.
Anyone who asserts an opinion without being able to convince me...
will receive a severe punishment under the grounds that they were negligent...
in their duties as an officer of the Royal Court.
Understood?
- Yes, Your Majesty. - Yes, Your Majesty.
While they may be slaves now,
they are still your family.
Nobody will be able to treat them harshly.
I will try my best...
to bring them back to their rightful positions as soon as possible.
Dear wife.
I have a question.
Go ahead.
Why can you not do anything?
I am sorry.
I still lack the power to beat the Former King Taejong.
Is it really because you lack power?
I do not have a hidden agenda.
While the Former King Taejong was always strict,
he always took one step back for the sake of his children.
That is why I am asking.
If you did everything in your power,
I thought you might have been able to save my father.
Did you do that?
Did you do everything in your power?
I guess not.
My dear.
You could have saved my father.
My dear.
I will excuse myself now.
Good night.
Your Highness.
Yes. Did you bring the Queen Dowager back to the Palace?
The eunuchs went to bring her back,
but she was not at home.
She was not at home?
Then where is she?
They said she left...
without saying where she was going.
What?
I apologize.
Relay my orders to the Royal Secretariat.
Send a message to all jurisdictions...
to find out where the Queen Dowager is. Hurry!
Yes, Your Highness.
Dear wife...
Your Highness.
Did you sleep well?
Yes. What brings you here?
I came because I wish to see you discuss political affairs with your subjects.
May I join you in the Royal Office?
As of today, we will have archivists in the Royal Office as well.
It is to prevent the King from discussing the matters of the state...
with just a few close subjects.
As long as the King does not plan something wrong...
and his subjects do not blindly follow him,
there is no reason to fear being recorded.
Keep that in mind.
- Yes, Your Majesty. - Yes, Your Majesty.
Among the children of the vassals assigned to the Loyal and Righteous Guards,
find all those who were disloyal and unfilial...
and kick them out of their posts.
Anyone who has failed to be filial and loyal...
must not work as a government employee in the Royal Court.
- Yes, Your Majesty. - Yes, Your Majesty.
All right, then. Today, we will discuss...
how to provide relief...
to the people during a year of famine as we had planned.
Please take turns and tell me what ideas you came up with.
Yes, Your Majesty. In my opinion,
the first thing we must do is figure out how...
the leadership of each region obtains the aid rice.
If the following year after the aid rice has been sent out...
ends up being another year of famine...
I saw the message that you had sent out.
Are you really unaware of where Mother is?
Yes.
She left without telling anyone.
Is there no place you think she might be?
You are married.
But you have no idea...
where Mother could have gone?
Let us go.
Where are we going?
I do not know.
But I have to find her no matter what.
[Kocowa Ver] E32 KBS1 'The King of Tears, Lee Bang-Won' -♥ Ruo Xi ♥-
How did you come all the way here?
I set out looking for you.
I looked around every temple I saw.
For what?
How are you doing?
I am doing fine.
Are you sick?
You do not look good.
Do not worry.
I am living peacefully.
You should leave now.
You checked that I am alive. Was it not enough?
Why are you not saying anything?
I am sorry.
Forgive me, please.
Do you...
feel sorry now?
It will not...
change anything even if you apologize.
I am sorry.
Please forgive me.
I truly loved you.
This has not changed at all.
Let go of my hands, please.
My dear.
I definitely...
loved you, too.
But now,
not forgiving you is...
the only thing I can do, my dear.
Let go of my hands, please.
Do not find me again.
I will live and die alone here.
I want to abandon the life...
that was half filled with hate...
and half filled with love.
I want my soul...
to fly free.
My dear.
Let us go.
I do not think we should just go.
The doctor said...
she got malaria.
(An infectious disease with high fever and shivering)
At night, she suffers from a high fever and passes out.
She is in here.
My dear.
My dear!
My dear.
Dear husband...
My dear.
Doctor!
Queen Dowager is with me.
Go and get a place for her and bring the royal doctor now!
Yes, Your Highness.
Mother.
Yangnyeong.
(Grand Prince Yangnyeong, Lee Bang Won's eldest son)
Yes.
Hyoryeong.
(Grand Prince Hyoryeong, Lee Bang Won's second son)
Chungnyeong.
Mother.
Mother!
Mother.
- Mother. - Mother.
Mother!
- No... - No.
- Mother. - Mother.
- Your Highness... - Mother...
Mother.
Your Highness.
- Your Highness... - Mother.
Mother!
Mother.
She passed away.
In 1420, in the 2nd year of King Sejong,
Queen Wongyeong, Lady Min passed away.
No.
My dear.
She was the one who made Lee Bang Won the King.
But Queen Wongyeong, Lady Min had lost...
all her siblings because of Lee Bang Won.
She was born a great woman of Goryeo...
and died under the rule of Joseon.
Where is Mother going?
She will be in a better place.
If there is such a place,
there must be a fiery pit as well.
I said so because I am the one to fall into the fiery pit.
Do not put yourself in the corner.
You are not born as a bad person.
Who is born as a bad...
or a good person?
If you do bad things,
that makes you a bad person.
How are things going?
When will we have peace and prosperity?
You took my place.
Should you not give us that much?
Yangnyeong.
I am not being sarcastic.
I wish you do well.
Please do well.
Your Majesty.
How long will you keep crying?
It is time to run the country.
Your Majesty.
Are you...
stopping me from mourning my mother now?
Your Majesty.
You crushed her when she lived.
Now you abandon her in death?
Do you wish to erase her soon?
Do you think that will erase...
all the evil you have done?
Majesty!
Please leave.
Leave me alone.
Stand up this instant!
You are the King.
You are not one woman's son. You rule over many.
Rather than letting out your sadness,
you must wipe the tears of your people.
Do you not see that?
Now get up.
Get up and do your duties!
I do not have long to live.
Before I die,
I have so much to teach you.
So get up and come with me.
You must.
This is a turtle ship.
(A ship shaped like a turtle.)
A few years ago in Imjin,
I sent a few of these ships to fight off foreign enemies.
They beat them in no time.
I would like you to keep this in mind...
and commend the sailors.
Yes. I will do that.
This stream flows through the Capital.
(Old Cheonggyecheon Stream)
It must be kept clean so it does not overflow.
I agree with that.
But any extra construction work...
will displease the people.
I cannot ignore that.
That is why I am having this done myself.
So the people do not resent you.
The path of a nobleman...
is not like that of a king.
A king, if need be,
must do cruel things as well.
And even after doing so,
we take pity on the dead...
and shed crocodile tears.
That is what a king does.
There can be no humane king.
Only a kingly king.
Until the moment you die,
you must not put politics aside.
Just because the nation is at peace and thriving,
you cannot become engrossed with religion.
Do not fall too much in love with art either.
If you do that, in no time at all,
you will become distant from the people.
If that happens...
You have done enough.
Please, stop.
Leave it to me now.
I do this for your future.
No.
You do this so you can live forever.
You wish to turn me into your shadow...
so you can rule Joseon from the grave.
Your Majesty.
You have become a prisoner to the throne.
At this rate, you might become a ghost...
that never leaves the Palace.
Please come down from the throne.
I am King now.
Leave everything to me.
Please forgive me for my crimes.
Please give us rain.
The people suffer in the drought.
Please take pity on them.
Do not let their hatred...
be targeted at the King.
Please...
Please give the King a bright future.
Your Highness!
Your Highness.
Your Highness!
Wake up!
Your Highness!
How is he?
You must prepare yourselves.
Please get up.
How could you leave...
without letting anything go?
What will you do...
when your body is so weighed down?
Please.
Live one day in peace.
Please live freely...
for at least one more day.
Why did you live like this?
You were not forgiven by a single person in your life.
What was the reason you lived like this?
I do not want to.
I will not hold your hand.
I will never...
forgive you.
Thank you.
Father.
Thank you.
Father!
Your Highness.
In 1422 A.D., the 4th year of King Sejong's reign,
Taejong Lee Bang Won took his last breath.
- Your Highness! - Your Highness!
- Bang Won! - Your Highness!
- Your Highness!
His life was a tragic one stained with blood,
but to the people, it was an era of peace.
- Your Highness! - Your Highness!
Father!
- Your Highness! - Your Highness!
He obtained power for himself and his family,
but he ultimately surpassed that...
and devoted himself to the nation and the people.
Father!
Your Highness, please enter!
(Calling out to the spirit of a deceased king)
Your Highness, please enter!
A pearl for the skies.
He accepted politics as his fate.
He was a true politician who dedicated himself to the nation.
But in his later years, he chose to step down from power...
and live the rest of his life as a normal individual.
(The upper)
- Father. - Father.
- Your Highness...
Your Highness...
Father.
Your Highness.
As Lee Bang Won closed his eyes, it began to rain.
Lee Bang Won was laid to rest with his lifelong partner...
and once sworn enemy,
Queen Wongyeong, Lady Min.
(Thank you for showing love to The King of Tears, Lee Bang Won.)