Lord Choi couldn’t leave because he couldn’t find Myung Yoon. Due to this, the Queen dowager had to return to the palace. Lord Choi apologises to her court lady and tells her there is only one thing left to do.
Meanwhile, Lee Gun brings Myung Yoon to his private chamber to hide her there. Gap seok is not in support of this decision. Even Myung Yoon herself doesn’t like the idea but Lee Gun is determined to keep her safe until he can find a way to help her escape.
But burdened by the prophecy of the seer regarding his daughter’s fate, Lord Choi enters Lee Gun’s chamber armed with a knife to stab him but Myung Yoon emerges from the inner room and tries to persuade her father to stop but Lord Choi is afraid of the prophecy coming to pass. With the crown prince dead, her life would be spared. Lee Gun tells him that nothing would change if he kills him because Dosung would definitely take revenge against him. Lord Choi is still stubborn until Gap seok is heard calling out to the prince from outside. This causes Lord Choi to give up and hand the knife over to Lee Gun. As he leaves, Gap seok enters to ask what the problem was but they don’t tell him.
Lord Choi questions Oh wol about the relationship between Myung Yoon and Lee Gun. Through their conversation, he discovers that Lee Gun is in love with Myung Yoon.
Myung Yoon feels terrible and wants to leave but Lee Gun refuses, telling her that he can’t bear it if something happens to her outside the palace. Just then Dosung calls from outside. Myung Yoon begs Lee Gun not to tell Dosung where she is. He agrees and after hiding Myung Yoon in the inner room, he meets with Dosung who suggests they have drinks together. Knowing Myung Yoon would be uncomfortable, Lee Gun suggests they drink at Dosung’s own room.
Left state councillor is still hatching his own plans. He tries to convince the Queen to kill the royal taster so as to safeguard her life. He says that he doesn’t trust that Lee Gun’s grandfather Master Moonhyung would spare her life and that she should simply clear the path for him so he can take care of the rest but the Queen refuses to hear him, saying she trusts that Lee Gun would protect her and Dosung. Left state councillor decides to give up but runs into the queen’s court lady who overheard their conversation. The two talk in private and he tells her that if the royal taster doesn’t die. She would be the scape goat and end up loosing her life. In that case, she should do everything she can to convince the queen.
She does so, trying to convince the queen to kill the royal taster at least for Dosung’s sake because if she doesn’t, he will definitely die.
Meanwhile, Lord Choi has already surrended himself to death. He writes a letter to Lee Gun and asks Moo Baek to give it to him. He also gives him enough money to help him after he escapes with Myung Yoon and Oh wol. After greeting court lady Kim, he goes to see Queen dowager. She wants them to spend their last night together as husband and wife. They reminisce about how they met again. He had saved her life after she tried to commit suicide by hanging herself. The two decide to make love for the last time. (I honestly do not still understand their romance)
Meanwhile, the Queen has nightmares of the king dying and prince Dosung’s death by poison. She wakes up screaming out of fear. Without thinking, she goes to the prison to see the royal taster. To her anger, the royal taster threatens to pin everything on Dosung if she doesn’t save her. Unable to control herself, the Queen stabs her on the neck with her knife and runs away in a panic. The royal taster bleeds to death.
Dosung is told what happened by the royal guard who also gives him the knife left behind by the queen. Dosung is pained after discovering what his mother did. He visits her in her chambers where she is weeping uncontrollably in the dark. He simply gives her the knife so she knows he is aware of what she did.
Then he grabs her court lady in anger and yells at her knowing she and his grandfather were responsible for pushing his mother to the edge. He threatens to kill her if she tries such a thing again.
Meanwhile, the news about the royal taster getting murdered have reached Lee Gun. He is devastated to hear this. Just then, Dosung enters and after Lee Gun dismisses everyone, he suddenly takes the blame for the royal taster’s death, saying he killed her. But when Lee Gun doesn’t react, he starts yelling that he should shout at him or do something to him, crying that it’s because of him that Lee Gun can no longer clear his name but Instead, Lee Gun just pulls him close and hugs him as the two of them cry onto each other’s shoulders. (Lee Gun must already know Dosung is taking the blame for his mother)
Meanwhile, the queen dowager and Lord Choi are ready to take poison to end their lives. Queen dowager drinks hers first and just then, Court lady Kim rushes inside to tell them that the royal taster is dead but the queen dowager already collapses.
Meanwhile, Master Moonhyung comes in to relay the news of the royal taster’s death but to everyone’s surprise, including Myung Yoon who has been hearing the conversation the entire time, Lee Gun takes the blame, saying he was the one who killed the royal taster.
What an episode! I was surprised that the Queen killed the royal taster. I sure wasn’t expecting that. That’s to say that no matter how weak someone can be, once it involves protecting things that are dear to them, they can do the unthinkable like what the Queen did.
My goodness. The brother hood between Lee Gun and Dosung is by far the best thing in the entire series. I know they are just doing the triangle love trope to add to the tension to the plot but these two brothers can carry it all on their own.
I don’t know if it’s just me but the chemistry between Lee Gun and Myung Yoon isn’t quite there yet. Maybe it’s because the storyline up till now have just been tragic so they are yet to show us the spark between them so I guess I will give them a chance. However, brotherhood all the way! I just hope it stays that way.