Queen Of Tears Episode 1 Recap

We see a wedding taking place then a man Hye Won having an interview in the garden of his home. He talks about how a new recruit like himself ended up marrying the heiress of the queen groups and that she’s the love of his life. It’s been three years since they’ve been married and things are going well.

They are also interviewing his wife Hae In in the kitchen while she’s slicing apples. But she’s quite hostile as she talks about how people assume her husband only married her for money. She says sassily that they only think that way because they had never seen her face. However now, they were seeing her face for the first time. Everyone tries to laugh but her serious expression causes them to stop.

Even though Hye Won says they are a happy family. In actuality, they aren’t so. They don’t share the same bed, they eat far apart on the dining table and they don’t work together.

Hae In tells her interviewers how she joined her father’s company as an intern after returning from her studies abroad five years ago. She was undercover so no one knew her real identity. Hye Won was always helping her with the photocopier at the office so she thought he liked her.

However, it was the opposite for Hye Won. He was actually worried she would ruin the photocopier plus people thought she was obnoxious and would soon get fired due to her attitude. That was why he decided to help her.

One day, he finally confronts her saying she could get fired but she says she didn’t care. However, he tells her his heart jumps whenever she gets scolded. With a sly smirk, she asks him why his heart jumped because of her. When Hyun woo can’t speak, Hae in tells him to think about why he feels that way. Then she  leaves .

One night, it’s raining. Hae in calls someone to pick her up but Hyun woo suddenly appears and offers her his umbrella saying he bothers her. Hae in at a loss for words as Hyun woo talks about how his family owns a land and he has paid his two years rent in advance at his apartment. He went to Seoul University and studied law. Hae in doesn’t understand why he’s telling her all this. That’s when he reveals that if she gets fired, he would take care of her. He always liked women who worked but for her, he wouldn’t mind being the breadwinner. That’s when he says he likes her. 

Hae in is speechless for a while. Hyun Woo tells her to think about what he said. She’s about to tell him she has a driver but he runs out into the rain. Hae in smiles to herself as she stared at the umbrella in her hand.

In the present, Hae in laughs as she tells the interviewer that was how they began their relationship but the minute he found out who she really was, he handed in his resignation and ghosted her. 

Flash back to Hyun woo in his farmhouse receiving a text from Hae in to come outside. To Hyun Woo’s surprise, Hae in arrived in a helicopter on his farm land where people were working. He looked at her amazed as she yelled if he would keep her waiting. Hyun woo then runs over and hugs her.

Now, in the present, Hyun woo remarks how angelic she looked in that moment. The interviewer asks if she’s no longer like that. Hyun woo immediately says they are happy in their marriage and that they are still very much in love like before but his reactions and body language don’t convince the interviewers.

A group of lawyers are outside the court and one of them tells the others that Hyun woo is getting a divorce but it should be kept a secret. They all debate who would take his case especially since they would be going up against the Queens. One of them recalls how Hyun woo’s aunt in law’s three divorces resulted in all the three attorneys who went against her to get fired. They all wonder why Hyun woo would put them all in a pickle when he’s married to the most sought after woman in Korea. One of them simply replied that it’s because Hae in is a lunatic.

We see Hae in, her secretary and entourage walking through the department store. She’s angry at not being invited to join a social elite club because she hasn’t reached the target quota. She then decides to cut off all the brands that aren’t making enough sales at the store. At a meeting, Hae in finds out that Hye won had stopped management from shutting down some of the low productive brands.

Upset, she immediately sends her secretary to call for him. Hye won arrives at her office where the meeting is taking place and Hae in questions his decision not to shut down the brands that are making less profit for their store. Hye won briskly answers that the stores have already invested 500 million won into the store. If they went to court against them, they would lose the case besides, the law has been revised against power tripping executives.

Hye won angrily asks him if he’s assuming she’s abusing her power. Why would they take over those expensive spots without the store getting their money’s worth. Hye won then advises her not to take action against them since they’ve already been excluded from bonuses in the company but Hae in asks him if she needed his advice. She tells him to do as she said and ensure he wins the lawsuit. Hye won has no choice but to agree. Hae in ends the meeting and leaves the office with Hye won feeling emasculated.

Hae in meets Hye won in the elevator and demands to know why he is determined to let everyone know that they don’t get along. She’s angry that he went ahead of her and told the store owner she wanted to lay off about her plans. Hye won responds that she’s unfair to the man given he has been with their store for so long. Hae in doesn’t care and demands that he treats those closer to him better. Hye Won coldly asks if she’s referring to herself. He asks If she thinks they are close. He then tells her he wants to talk to her later that day at the lounge. Hae in leaves the elevator frustrated and joins her entourage who are waiting for her outside.

Hae in doesn’t come as planned and that night at home, Hye won draws up a divorce agreement. Just then, Hae in sends him a text requesting his presence at the family room.

Hae-in’s family is gathered. While there, they talk about the interview they conducted. Hae-in’s brother smirks as he talks about how rumors spread about his sister’s troubled marriage because they are always arguing in public. They had even argued that day. He also ridicules Hye Won

Hae-in’s mother cuts him off and demands that Hye Won and Hae In have a baby to stop the rumors. She tells the family’s butler Grace to make preparations for Hae in to begin fertility treatments. Then she orders Hye won that after Hae in has delivered a child, he would go for his MBA abroad despite his protests that he has no intention of getting a degree. Hae In’s father has even decided on a name for their child su bin and says that she would have their surname Hong.

Hae-in’s brother thinks it’s unfair since he had wanted his son to have his wife’s surname but Chairman Hong says it’s different this time.

Hye won follows Hae in to her room and ask that they speak. Hae in nonchalantly asks him what he wants to say to her. Hye won asks if she really wants a baby after all that’s been going on between them but Hae in doesn’t care as long as it will benefit her. She also doesn’t care if he goes abroad without her. She receives a call about another interview for she and Hye won. 

Hye won, frustrated tells her to stop doing interviews with him. She should do it on her own instead of lying about how happy they are when that’s not the truth. He leaves in anger but Hae in is unbothered. Hye won walks out of the house that night with no shoes on and wearing only pajamas.

Soo Cheol, Hae-in’s brother, is on the phone. He wants people to know of the two hundred million won he donated to charity. As he’s talking, Hae in suddenly appears and starts hitting him for being disrespectful to Hye won during the meeting. She warns him never to do that again and leaves with Soo Cheol cursing her under his breath.

We see Hye won getting drunk with his friend. The friend is uncomfortable taking his case, afraid to go against the Hongs family. He wails over how he was decieved by Hae In. The reason he married her was because she had said she would protect him but she never did. Hye won refuses to go home and when his friend asks how he would reach home, he replies that there are always two people watching over him to ensure he doesn’t do something scandalous. His friend is in disbelief when he notices the two men at a distance.

Later that night, Hye won heads home with the men still following him. He yells at them to go home and continues walking the streets singing a loud sorrowful song. 

Hae In overhears Hye Won’s approaching footsteps outside her room. He pauses at her door but hesitates to enter before leaving for his own room. Disappointed, Hae In returns to what she was doing, watching Hye won’s pictures from their recent interview.

The next day, Hye Won visits his Aunt in law Hong Beom ja in prison ignoring side talks from other lawyers of being a disgrace to their profession after selling himself to the Hongs. Beom Ja had been imprisoned after assaulting her father’s girlfriend Mo Seul hee because she exposed her for embezzlement. She tells Hye Won how she gets back on people who abandon her pointing out how she destroyed her three ex husbands lives which made them and their families flee to another country. Hearing this gives Hye won the cold feet about divorcing Hae In. Beom Ja pleads with him to help speed up her release so she can attend her mother’s memorial.

The news about Chairman Hong Man Dae’s late wife’s memorial spreads across the country. Many people are wondering if the chairman would reconcile with another of his rebellious son. Hye Won and the other son in laws are preparing the meal for the ceremony when Soo Cheol enters introducing the newest son in law to them. He announces that it’s the duty of the men in the Hong family to prepare the celebratory dinner. Hye Won remarks that it’s only the son in laws who does the cooking. He wonders why Soo Cheol wouldn’t join in since it’s a family tradition from ancient times but Soo Cheol leaves with the excuse that he’s allergic to oil while Hye Won and the other son in laws welcome the newest to hell.

Kim Seon ha, Hae in’s mother relishes in Grace, the butler’s praise on her hanbok. Seul Hee, her father in lawChairman Man dae’s girlfriend appears and tells her that she wouldn’t be able to attend Man dae’s late wife’s funeral as she doesn’t want to make the family uncomfortable. Seon ha tells her to wear it so people wouldn’t think she was mistreating her. That’s when Chairman Man Dae appears and asks Seon ha if she’s mistreating Seul hee. Seon ha denies it and to her shock, Seul hee tells Chairman Dae that she would wear the hanbok. Seon ha is completely flustered.

The ceremony begins but all of a sudden, Beom Ja who had recently being released from prison marches in and creates a huge scene accusing Seul hee of being responsible for her mother’s death. The others try to explain that her mother had died of a heart attack but Beom ja puts the blame of the heart attack on Seol hee. She even ends up bullying Soo Cheol. After the ceremony, Beom Jun, Hae in’s father calls Hye Won privately and tells him he plans on backstabbing an employee of his for leaving the company. This makes Hye won fear even more about divorcing Hae In

The next day, Hye won goes to see a therapist explaining the pain he was going through in his marriage. He talks about how he despises his wife more than the rest of the family because she acts like she doesn’t care what happens to him. The therapist asks why he can’t get a divorce and Hye Won responds that he would die if that were to happen. In fact death would be better than what Hae In’s family would do to him. Even the therapist is so shocked by what he hears that even when he calls his wife later that day and she hangs up on him, he feels that at least, he’s faring better than Hye Won.

Grace, the Hong family’s butler is being followed by a wealthy woman who is pleading with her to arrange a meeting between her daughter and the son of a prominent family. She wishes for her daughter to marry into their family but Grace plays hard to get. She prides herself as a well known matchmaker saying that Hae in was regretting her marriage because she didn’t listen to her advice. She says she wouldwould soon divorce her recent husband. She would also take her advice when she wants to remarry. Just then, Hae in steps out of the elevator. Grace tries to act friendly with her but Hye Won rebuffs her coldly telling her not to act as though they were close (Almost as if she had heard everything she said)

Grace agrees to matchmake the woman’s daughter but she’s seething with anger over how Hae In treated her so she secretly meets with Hye Won in his office and tells him that Hae in had completely left him out of her will even though they had signed a prenup. She had no intention of sharing any of her wealth with him.

Hye Won is unhappy to hear this and when Hae In tells him to come somewhere with her, he refuses immediately saying he doesn’t want to go anywhere with her. Instead, he visits his parents in the countryside. They are disappointed that once again, he didn’t come with his wife.

During dinner, His older sister expresses her disappointment at him for not attending their father’s sixtieth birthday but to everyone’s shock, he announces that he’s divorcing Hae in. He tells them that nothing would change his mind. In private, his siblings try to convince him not to divorce Hae In. His sister calls him selfish after she had sacrificed herself so he could go to school. His brother reminds him how happy their father was when he was marrying Hae In. He also says Hyun woo would be the subject of discussion just like his friend who also divorced. If he dovorces as well, no one would be talking about his friend anymore but about him. Hye Won is frustrated with them because he knows they are only trying to stop him so that they can continue their lavish lifestyles. Hyun Woo leaves them angrily.

Hye Won brings out the divorce settlement paper from his safe and goes to see Hae in her room. However, she tells him she has something to say to him. Hye won listens and she reveals that she’s dying. She only has three months to live. She had wanted him to follow her to the hospital that day but that’s what the doctor told her. Hye Won is shocked and can’t bring himself to tell her about the divorce hiding the paper behind his back. With teary eyes, he promises Hae In to take good care of her. He then pulls her into a hug and tells her he loves her.

The episode ends…

After all that happened, he loves her? She’s dying?

I’m hooked. I’m really enjoying the series and can’t wait to find out what happens next.


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