Empress Ki - Introduction and recapping...Episode 1-10

Empress Ki is a 51 episode Korean historical costume drama currently playing on 8TV every Monday to Friday at 5pm



This is a character description for reference, translated from the drama’s official website. Most of the characters are fictional and based on the writer's imagination, but those based on the real figures are following some historical facts.





Ki Seung-nyang (Ha Ji-won): Yuan empress born in Goryeo.

She was taken away to be a tribute woman to Yuan during her childhood but managed to escape the fate, only to have her mother die in the process. She grows up disguising as a man to avenge her mother’s death. Her target is the royalty Wang Go and she meets the King of Goryeo when carrying out her plan of revenge. Seung-nyang becomes a part of the army and she is given the task to escort the Crown Prince of Yuan in Goryeo, who is being exiled. Little did she know that she’s slowly embroiled in a conflict of the Yuan people. She protects Ta-hwan, the Crown Prince from demise and saves him, but her real identity as a woman becomes known to others. Seung-nyang is then sent away to Yuan as a tribute woman, succumbing to her original fate. She grows closer to Ta-hwan, but his betrayal causes the death of her father and she vows to avenge him. Becoming a maid in the Yuan’s royal palace, she constantly faces threats from Empress Tanashiri and Seung-nyang needs to fight for her life, defying the cruel destiny for herself.

Wang Yoo (Joo Jin-mo): ruler of the Goryeo Dynasty.

Instead of living up to his reputation as Goryeo’s Crown Prince, he chooses to fool around with the street gang each day. But then, it’s actually part of his plan to deceive Wang Go while investigating the man in secret, meeting Seung-nyang in the process. Yoo gets embroiled in a conspiracy to kill Ta-hwan while the crown prince is exiled to Goryeo. He is deposed from Goryeo’s throne and exiled to Yuan. Unexpectedly, he meets Seung-nyang there with her true identity as a woman, working as Yuan’s palace maid. He protects her from harm and his feelings start to develop for her. Yoo helps Seung-nyang to return to the palace after she is ousted because of the evil scheming. He returns to Goryeo but soon finds out that Seung-nyang is now in stuck in between him and Ta-hwan.

Ta-hwan (Ji Chang-wook): Emperor of the Yuan Dynasty. 

Although he’s born as Emperor Myungjong’s eldest son, his right to ascend the throne is defied by the powerful officials who places his younger step-brother on the throne instead of him. He’s sent to be exiled in Goryeo and just like his late father, he lives each day fearing for his own life and chooses to act like a fool in front of the officials. Deep in his heart, anger, hatred, and sadness haunts his lonely days. He falls for Seung-nyang when he meets her in Goryeo and she protects him with her lies. Ta-hwan eventually returns to Yuan and ascends the throne, but his heart continues to feel sorry for her. After he finds out that Seung-nyang is in the palace, his love and affection continues to develop for her. Seung-nyang later helps him to break the oppression from the officials.

Yunchul-The person behind the assassination of the late king, he managed to block the attempt to place the late king’s eldest son Ta-hwan on the throne. He then sends Ta-hwan into exile and places Ta-hwan’s younger step-brother on the throne, acting as his puppet. Considers Goryeo as part of Yuan instead of an independent country.

Danashri -Yunchul’s daughter. Legitimate empress of Ta Hwan. With the blood of the royal family in Yuan, she has amazing beauty. But, she is very jealous woman.For political purpose, she married Ta Hwan, crown emperor of Yuan. She did not love Ta Hwan. But, she still could not put up with the thing that Ta Hwan does not love her. She felt insulted. When she hears the news about Concubine Park being pregnant, her jealousy fires up, sending her on a witch hunt to kill the concubine and also weeding out the other palace maids that might have caught the emperor’s attention.

Dang Ki Sae -Hot-tempered and ruthless, he knows no fear, to the point of pointing his swords towards Ta-hwan, the Emperor of Yuan. He won’t hesitate to get rid of those he hates. He tries to kill Seung-nyang per his sister, Danashri’s order but fails as the maid is protected by the eunuchs. He’s also General Baek Ahn’s rival.

Tab Ja Hae- 2nd son of Yunchul. An unruly Yuan’s officer who manages the finance department but spends most of his time with money and women, particularly the tribute women from Goryeo while embezzling the money for his own benefit. Obeying only the words of his father and his older brother, he thinks lowly of Goryeo born, and doesn’t spare an ounce of respect towards the eunuchs and the  palace maids.

Park Boolhwa- Eunuch of Yuan originated from Goryo.
Later, he succeeded to hold military authority of Yuan and became a core man in Won. He shows true royalty to Empress Ki.
He eliminates many political enemy of Empress Ki for her.
After Yunchul’s collapse, he even tries to fight against Baekan (man who destroyed Yunchul and became a 1st man of Won) with his military.

Bang Sunwoo- Becoming an eunuch since he was young, he served two kings before and continues to offer his assistance for Wang Yoo. He stays with Yoo through thick and thin, proving his loyalty. Even if it costs his own life, he’s willing to do anything for the king.

Wang Go: prominent Goryeo royalty- He exercises great power due to his popularity among the court officials of Goryeo. He fosters good relationship with Yuan as a way to gain favour from the dynasty in order to promote himself as a suitable king of Goryeo. His greed for the power never stops and he never gives up trying to seize the throne from Wang Yoo.

Cast
Ha Ji Won as Ki Seung Nyang, later Empress Ki
Joo Jin Mo as Wang Yoo, later King Choonghye of Goryeo
Ji Chang Wook as Ta Wan, later Emperor Huizong of Yuan
Extended Cast
Yoon Ah Jung as Yeon Hwa
Kim Myung Gook as Jang Soon Yong
People who assist Empress Ki in Goryeo
Choi Moo Sung as Park Bool Hwa
Cha Kwang Soo as Go Yong Bo
Lee Moon Shik as Bang Sun Woo
Kwon Oh Joong as Choi Moo Song
Yoon Yong Hyun as Jum Park Yi
Lee Won Jong as Dok Man
Enemies who confront Empress Ki
Cha Do Jin as Tab Ja Hae
Jun Gook Hwan as Yeon Chul
Jung Woong In as Uhm Byung Soo
Kim Jung Hyun as Dang Ki Se
Baek Jin Hee as Tana Shiri
Lee Jae Yong as Wang Go
Empress Ki’s Rival
Kim Young Ho as Baek Ahn
Jin Yi Han as Tal Tal
Kim Suh Hyung as Empress Dowager

Some other photos

This Korean Historical costume  drama is based on the life of the famous Empress Ki, who moved up the social class from a tribute woman from Goryeo to an Empress of Yuan Dynasty.

The story is of a royal love triangle: Empress Ki, the Emperor of Yuan, and the King of Goryeo. The king who sends away his lover, the tears of the empress looking at her lover, and the emperor’s happiness that is replaced momentarily with a doubt in his eyes. This scene is a reminder that the journey down the road will be not without pain and tears, but it is lovely.

Empress Ki used to be a girl named Nyang and Wang Yoo was a crown prince. Yoo happened to free Nyang and the other women out of pity but that sent the Yuan generals on a killing spree to catch them, sending most of the pitiful women to Yoo’s feet as corpse. Nyang escaped death, obviously, thanks to her mother, who handed her a ring that matches her father’s. Nyang wandered around the city as a beggar in search of her father but missed him  by a mere second before she encountered Wang Go, a royal who was the likely candidate in the favour of Yuan as the next Goryeo king.

Nyang introduced herself as Seung-nyang  to hide her identity as a girl and grew up as an excellent archer. She spent her time doing dirty jobs for  Wang Go while using her earnings to retrieve the tribute women from Yuan. Yoo came down to her town hearing about her amazing unbeatable archery skills and challenged her for an archery competition, which they both do pretty good until Ki aims her arrow directly at him, falls on his shoulder, vomits all over him and passes out. Ahahaha. She’s taken to Yoo’s quarters to sleep it off. When she wakes up, Yoo is playing a gayageum. He offers to teach her how to play and sits behind her – which seems to set off some strange feelings. Either because he’s holding her hands or because he’s so close, I’m not sure. They both feel something although I thought at this point, he still believes she’s a HE. When it gets so uncomfortable that Ki can’t handle it, she throws the gayageum and turns as if to stab him. Lowering her voice, she says she has to go. He admits he’s the Crown Prince.

They meet again because she agreed to teach him some arrow-shooting tips. She also meets with Wang Go  who tells her to protect the Crown Prince. They go to a festival where a black-hooded assassin attempts to kill Yoo but Ki jumps in front of him and takes an arrow in the leg. When she refuses a piggy-back, Yoo  carries her back to his quarters. Once the arrow is removed, Yoo rips open her pant leg to inspect the wound only to have Ki slap his face. She realizes she made a huge error and attempts to cover it by saying he ripped the only clothing she has.

There is a bath scene with Yoo trying to bring in a set of new, fresh clothes for her but she locked the door and won’t let him in. Ki meets with King Go again who gives her an errand. Over a meal with Yoo, she brings up something in the market he’s investigating and you can tell he doesn’t trust her because of what she says. I’m not sure if what happens next is political plotting but it appears to be a set up – with Ki being caught and arrested by Yoo and his men and Wang Go being a part of it. 

Somehow Ki ends up in Emperor Huizong’s camp. He (from what I can tell so far) is a shrewd guy but pretending to be sickly, weak and an idiot. Their first meeting, he’s trying to sneak out of the camp but ends up having to hide in Ki’s tent and watches her bathe.  He sneezes, she hears him and put a sword at his throat asking who he is. 

Wang Yoo has figured out evil Wang Go’s plan. He’s hoping the Yuan Prince is killed in Goryeo which would result in war – with the blame being placed squarely on Wang Yoo. Goryeo would be destroyed, Wang Yoo tossed out on his ear and Wang Go would become King. Wang Yoo rides out to meet Ta Hwan to offer protection, which would keep Goryeo protected as well.

We left off with Ki discovering Ta Hwan inside her quarters, watching her take a sponge bath, partially clothed. She hears him sneeze and quickly draws her sword across his throat. Ki demands to know how much he saw and if he’s a thief? Clearly insulted, Ta Hwan starts to say who he is…but looks down at his clothes and realizes he’s dressed as a Yuan soldier. Ki hits him in the face, twice and for good measure – kicks him right between the legs. 

He falls to the ground, moaning. He tries to make a deal with Ki to get him out of camp but Ki now thinks he’s a deserter. She pulls him up by his ear and drags him outside. She drags him to the horse stalls and orders him to clean up the manure. He has until morning or she’ll report him as a deserter. He tries again to tell her he’s the Yuan Prince but she kicks him, face down into the manure. 

At nightfall, the Goryeo soldiers realize all the Yuan solders are gone – they’ve been set up for an attack. Suddenly fire-arrows are shot into the air towards them, killing quite a few. Ki starts fighting alongside her fellow soldiers. Ta Hwan, meanwhile is trying to escape again but overhears men shouting about finding him and killing him. He hides inside a carrier in the supply tent.

Ki rushes to the Prince’s tent, sees him laying in bed and yells at him to come out. When he doesn’t, she grabs him and tries to drag him out. Realizing it’s the eunuch, she yells at him to change his clothes. Too late, they hear someone saying it’s the Prince’s tent and find themselves surrounded by swords. Ki fights but she’s outnumbered. The eunuch runs but is killed. Well, that stinks – he was just trying to help the real Prince escape.

The soldiers start chanting that the Prince is dead and we see the Yuan soldiers who pulled out where in on the plot to kill him. Great, so he can’t even trust his own men. Baek-Ahn and Tai Tai (Yuan men) are shocked to discover the body is NOT the real Prince but instead his eunuch. They decide to keep it secret and find the Prince so they can kill him. 

However Ki is aware that the real Prince must still be alive since she recognized the eunuch and tells her Goryeo commanders. Shortly Baek-Ahn and Tai Tai arrive to accuse the Goryeo soldiers of allowing the Prince to die on their land. They threaten Commander Ki that when they return home, they’re all dead. Commander Ki figures out they’re hiding the real Prince so they need to find him first. They search all the tents.

Ki searches and hears someone snoring. She finds Ta Hwan inside the box and dumps water on him, still believing he’s just a deserter. She closes the lid on the box and walks away. Baek-Ahn sees him. Ki remembers back on Ta Hwan telling her he’s the Prince and wonders if it’s really him? She runs back and overhears Ta Hwan begging Baek-Ahn not to kill him.Baek-Ahn makes Ta Hwan believe he won’t but the minute he climbs back into the carrier to hide – Baek-Ahn draws his sword. He is interrupted by the arrival of the Goryeo Prince, Wang Yoo and is taken to see him. Baek-Ahn lies to Wang Yoo that the Prince is dead. Ki sneaks into the tent once they leave and pulls Ta Hwan out by his ear. 

Wang Yoo is angry and accuses the Yuan of killing the Prince. Commander Ki admits the real Prince is still alive. Ki turns Ta Hwan over to Byung Soo. Ta Hwan yells at Ki that he won’t forget what she did. Baek-Ahn is still insisting the Prince is dead but Byung Soo comes running in with Ta Hwan. Baek-Ahn pretends to be delighted that Ta Hwan is still alive but none of the Goryeo soldiers are fooled and neither is Wang Yoo.

Ki sees Wang Yoo and recognizes him – she’s stunned to realize he’s the Goryeo King. Ta Hwan is escorted into Goryeo safely, much to the consternation of the Yuan soldiers who were ordered to kill him. Wang Go is especially angry as is the Queen Mother. They make new plans to kill the Prince.

Wang Yoo hears that Ki is the one who found the Prince and summons him. When Ki enters Wang Yoo’s quarters, she immediately falls to her knees to apologize for insulting him and hitting him in the face. Wang Yoo grins, he’s having fun with her – he’s actually very happy to see him. He warns Ki not to disappear like that again. Wait….so he does think Ki is a guy, right? He hugs Ki and tells him how much he missed him. Ki looks surprised.He gives Ki the mission of shadowing Ta Hwan and protecting him. Byung Soo is jealous that Ki might be above him in the King’s favor so he makes a deal with Wang Go. Lovely, we now have enemies everywhere – I can’t keep track. Back in Yuan, Baek-Ahn and his soldiers are tortured for not killing the Prince. Yeon Chul and his 2 blood-thirsty sons Ki-Se and Ja-Hae enjoy inflicting pain. Ki-Se is the man who murdered Ki’s Mother.

Ta Hwan has a nightmare, seeing Yeon Chul kill his Father. Well, that probably why he wants Ta Hwan dead. He wakes up screaming. Ki tells him to go back to sleep but he has to pee so she brings him the chamber pot. She turns around but he demands she undress him – he’s never undressed himself.  He pulls up his robe and stands there, waiting for her to untie his pants. She carefully reaches over, feeling his abs without looking and unties the sash.He waits for her to pull down his undies but she refuses. She turns back around and he pees. She’s shocked and puts her hands over her ears so she won’t hear. She goes out to empty the pot. She’s also his food tester but he dumps the table when she tells him to eat. He sticks his tongue out at her. Back inside, he aims darts at Ki while she’s sleeping.

He wants her to leave, she’s been ordered to protect him. They fight about the King – she reminds him the King is keeping him alive. He throws a full-on tantrum. Ki washes up and drops her ring necklace outside in front of Commander Ki. He recognizes the rings. As Ta Hwan sleeps, Byung Soo tries to kill him  Ki saves his life again. Byung Soo escapes.

Commander Ki pulls Ki aside. He tears up and tells her she’s just like her Mother. *sniff* He gives her back her rings and asks why she didn’t say anything? He starts to touch her cheek but she pulls away. She doesn’t want to meet her brothers, she likes things the way they are. Commander Ki understands why she’s angry – she lost her Mother and has been alone for a long time.

But it turns out, Ki was sent off to be a concubine – if it’s discovered she’s posing as a man, the whole family will suffer. Ta Hwan asks her to teach him how to use a sword after another horrible nightmare. They spar in the yard and she kicks his ass. She pops him on the head and he bleeds.

Wang Yoo trades barbs with Wang Go about Yuan and Goryeo. Little boy playing war games over land. I’ll admit Wang Yoo looks hot on the throne. I don’t understand why Wang Yoo doesn’t just make this guy drink poison. Ta Hwan practices shooting arrows with Ki 

Ta Hwan sits in a bath, angry that he can’t beat “him” at arrows or swords or …anything! Ki enters, covering her eyes to bring him clean clothes. He props his feet on the rim of the tub and orders her to wash his feet. She turns around, gasps and turns back around. She backs up, sits down and grabs his foot – all without turning around.He muses that he can beat her at riding and she laughs. He slides closer to her and suggests a race, just the two of them. She turns around, gasps again and turns back. She refuses but he says he’s not ordering, he’s asking. He pulls her hand towards him, begging her to get him out of there for just one day. She fights him while trying to keep her eyes covered. 

She still refuses so he throws another full-blown tanty, splashing water all over. He stands up and she turns around, her eyes widen and she gasps again. He wins. They ride out to the beach to race.  Ta Hwan jumps from his horse onto Ki’s and throws his arms around her. They fall off and play in the water.

He cries that he doesn’t want to die, he wants to go home and avenge his Father’s death. He tells her when he is Emperor, he won’t forget her. She tells him to not use Goryeo for concubines and eunuch’s. Wang Yoo discovers Ki and the Prince went out. He rides to the beach, furious. Both men offer their horse to Ki since her horse ran off. She rides with Ta Hwan, who smiles like he won the first round.

Wang Yoo warns Ki to be careful of assassins and to be careful who she trusts. She asks for a cook and seamstress for the Prince.  Ta Hwan is upset that Ki is with the King. The King wants Ki to stay with him tonight. Ta Hwan walks into the King’s quarters and plops himself down beside Ki.Ta Hwan compliments Wang Yoo on his men. He puts his arm around Ki and asks her to go with him if he ever returns to Yuan. Ah, but she needs the King's permission to leave so Ta Hwan asks the King to “give him” Ki. She chokes on her tea. Ki gets uncomfortable with both men vying for her attention and leaves. Ta Hwan follows her out, calling her name. Wang Yoo is jealous and disturbed. 

In Yuan, Yeon Chul has Baek-Ahn and Tai Tai brought before him from prison. They’re given a new assignment – to kill Ta Hwan while they’re at Daechong. He orders his sons to kill everything on the island . Wang Yoo orders Commander Ki to secretly search his soldiers to find the assassin. He jealously watches as Ki  gives lessons to Ta Hwan on how to shoot the short arrows, like she did with him.

Yeon-chul planned another attack, this time sending Dangkise and Tapjahae together with Baek Ahn and Taltal to Goryeo. Yoo witnessed how chummy Seung-nyang was with Ta-hwan that sent his blood boiling and another round of glaring at them. Later, Seung-nyang came to meet him and wondered if he’s mad because of her closeness with Ta-hwan and acted all cute in front of him, to the point of teasing him with her smile and poking his chest . Yoo screamed and woke up from his dream while Eunuch Bang and Moo-sung, having witnessed him talking in his sleep, were worried that he’s falling for a man that was Seung-nyang. He threw them out of his room while wondering if they really thought he was falling for Seung-nyang.

Baek-Ahn figures out why Yeon Chul wants Ta Hwan dead so desperately – he killed Ta Hwan’s Father. The Yuan assassins arrive and are met by Byung Soo. Commander Ki discovers Byung Soo is gone and knows he’s the assassin. The Yuan assassins dress as Goryeo soldiers and attack. They find Ta Hwan and shout orders to kill him. Ki grabs his arm and runs.

She fights off a band of baddies and shoves Ta Hwan over a wall. Before she can follow, she comes face to face with Dangkise, the man who murdered her mother. He swings his sword to kill her but she kicks him and goes flying over the wall. Commander Ki is happy to see her, they run to make an escape through a back exit but it’s blocked by Baek-Ahn. The Goryeo soldiers plus Ki and Ta Hwan fight their way through. Commander Ki tells Ki to take the boat and get Ta Hwan off the island. She doesn’t want to leave without him but he yells at her that she must live. She cries but obeys his order.

They escape and find their way to the boat but before they can cast off, Baek-Ahn shows up. Ta Hwan suddenly steps up and reminds Baek-Ahn he is the heir to the Yuan Empire. His words get through to Baek-Ahn, he turns and kills the soldiers. He helps cast the boat off. The ugly brothers show up and kick his ass for letting Ta Hwan get away. Wang Go isn’t happy either.

Ki and Ta Hwan sneak through the woods and see the Yeon assassins setting up camp. They see Commander Ki, tied up as a prisoner. He’s brought before Wang Go and the ugly brothers who ask where Ta Hwan is headed. Wang Go plans to implicate the King as being the one behind everything. Ki cries as her Father is led away while Ta Hwan holds her back.

Seung-nyang and Ta-hwan ran through the forest the whole night and reached the shore before finding an abandoned small boat. They tried to push it into the water but Baek Ahn and Taltal managed to find them. Seung-nyang protected Ta-hwan from Baek Ahn’s arrow and the general told Ta-hwan to sacrifice himself for his country by dying.  instead of killing Ta-hwan right away. Ta-hwan took the courage and told Baek Ahn that he wanted to live and he won’t die easily.

Byung-Soo orders a drawing of Ki and takes it to Wang Go, telling him this is the person who is with Ta Hwan. Wang Go recognizes Ki and orders the poster be placed all over with a reward.The creepy brothers join in the hunt, complete with hounds. It begins raining which means the dogs lose the scent. Ta Hwan whines to Ki about the rain and she firmly reminds him of all the people who are dying in order to protect him. She silently prays for her Father to hang on.

Commander Ki is being held in a cage. Wang Yoo meets Wang Go on the road but hides his face. Commander Ki and Wang Yoo exchange surprised looks at they pass. From this, Wang Yoo figures out they haven’t found Ta Hwan yet so he orders a few of his guys to follow Wang Go. Wang Go promises to make Byung-Soo a General when this is all over. The soldiers are drugged by a courtesan working with Wang Yoo. Once they all pass out, Wang Yoo’s men enter to search for Commander Ki.

Moo-Song (Wang Yoo’s right-hand man) finds him but instead of letting himself be freed, he informs Moo-Song of Wang Go’s plans. He tells him to go and save Ki and just leave him. *sniff* When Wang Go returns, Byung-Soo suggests they kill Commander Ki since they don’t need him. We hear a long, sob story about why Byung-Soo is turning traitor to his own people but I could care less. He uses a hot poker to burn Commander Ki eyes.

Ta Hwan tries again to stop Ki from taking him back  - by promising wealth when he becomes Emperor. Ki gags his mouth so he’ll shut up. Ahahaha. The creepy brothers continue their search as does Wang Yoo and his guys – all searching for Ki and Ta Hwan but with different motives. Ki tries to keep Ta Hwan warm by covering him with leaves and her own outer jacket.

The creepy brothers are catching up, Ki kills one of the hunting dogs. They chase them to the very edge of a jagged cliff. They decide to jump on 3 – and land hanging from another cliff holding on by their fingertips. The creepy brothers order the Yuan soldiers to shoot and with arrows flying closely around them, they let go and fall into the water below. Wang Yoo and his men watched from a oposite bank and rush closer to the water but don’t see them

In Yuan, the younger Emperor dies…which makes Ta Hwan the successor – if he can live long enough to claim it. The Queen Mother discovers Yeon Chul has gone to Goryeo to “escort” Prince Ta Hwan home.  Ki washes ashore with Ta Hwan in an underground cave. She realizes he is freezing so removing her blouse, she attempts to warm him up using body heat.She begs him not to die, she needs to save her Father. She passes out on top of him.

When Ta Hwan wakes up, he panics wondering where he is and then sees Ki on top of him, unclothed. He stares at her, wondering why his heart is pounding. She wakes up so he immediately pretends he’s still out cold. She jumps up and quickly puts on her shirt but Ta Hwan peeks and sees the wrappings binding her chest. She checks his breathing, putting her head on his bare chest again – which makes Ta Hwan confused again. 

Before Ki can give him mouth-to-mouth, Ta Hwan jumps up, fully awake now. She’s so happy he’s alive, she hugs him which freaks him out even more. He asks why her chest is wrapped and assumes the infection from her arm wound has spread? She quickly tells him she’s fine and they’re not far from Goryeo. He thinks the reason his heart was pounding so hard was probably he was having some heart problems.

Wang Go drags the blind and (with his tongue cut out) mute Commander Ki before Wang Yoo. He calls Byung-Soo to explain that Commander Ki is the one who killed Prince Ta Hwan. Everyone knows this is crap and Wang Soo has proof that the creepy brothers are the true assassins. Commander Ki bit Ja-Hae on the hand. Sure enough, there are bite marks on his hand. Just then, everyone is informed that Yeon Chul’s ship has arrived.Wang Yoo meets with Yeon Chul and tells him his creepy sons killed Prince Ta Hwan. He wants them to leave Goryeo immediately. Yeon Chul admits he doesn’t care – he can say Goryeo killed Ta Hwan and they will all die. Yeon Chul has more power in Goryeo since he also has Wang Go on his side. The Royal guards are disbanded, while Wang Yoo watches helplessly. He wants to kill Yeon Chul, both the creepy brothers, Byung-Soo – all of them but his men beg him not to. Goryeo would be destroyed.

Ki and Ta Hwan disguise themselves to walk through the market on the way to the Palace. They hide when they see Byung-Soo, Ki explains to Ta Hwan that he’s a traitor and so it Wang Go. They hide in an abandoned building but Ki eventually passes out the infected wound on her arm. Ta Hwan tries to steal some medicine but is chased by Wang Go’s men. Luckily one of Wang Yoo’s men, Yong-hyun sees him and helps him escape. He also brings a doctor in for Ki.When Ta Hwan goes inside to check on Ki, the doctor tells Yong-hyun that Ki is a woman. Inside, Ta Hwan tends to Ki and remembers back on all the things she did for him and her patience with his whining. And the whole time, she was very sick but never showed it. He berates himself for being so selfish. He whispers to her that she is his only true friend, in this whole wide world. 

When Ki wakes up, Ta Hwan is sleeping and Yong-hyun is there. He asks why she never told that she was a woman. She begs him to never tell anyone and he agrees. He tells her King Wang Yoo is surrounded by enemies – both in the Palace and outside. They have to find a way to let Wang Yoo know that Prince Ta Hwan is alive. Ki forces Ta Hwan into a coffin, fills it with rice and pours rotten fish oil inside – to make him smell dead. The plan is to have Byung-Soo bring them inside the Palace at which time Ta Hwan will reveal himself to still be alive.Ki approaches Byung-Soo and plays dumb to the fact that he’s the traitor. It works, Ki escorts him to Ta Hwan’s “dead body” rotting inside a coffin. Wang Yoo discovers that Wang Go has secured a deal that Goryeo will become part of Yeon. Byung-Soo brings Ki and the coffin to the front gates of the Palace. Once it’s confirmed to be Ta Hwan, they bring the coffin inside. The Yeon soldiers and Yeon Chul pretend to be shocked and saddened that the Prince is dead. 

Ki tells Wang Yoo that the Prince is alive and Ta Hwan jumps out of the coffin. Yeon Chul is angry and demands to know what happened. Ki tries to explain that the creepy brothers attempted to kill Ta Hwan, but one look from Yeon Chul scares Ta Hwan. He pretends to faint. Wang Yoo is so happy Ki is alive, he hugs her. Ta Hwan continues to pretend to be out until everyone leaves and Baek-Ahn informs him the younger Emperor is dead – which means Ta Hwan is now Emperor.

Ki asks Wang Yoo about her Father, Commander Ki. She’s taken to see him and realizes he’s been blinded and silenced. She tries to get him to understand that it’s her but he’s frightened and fights her. She finally allows him to touch the rings and he recognizes them. He touches her face as she cries. She tells him to wait – Ta Hwan will sort everything out and she will kill whoever did this.

Baek-Ahn reminds Ta Hwan the only way he can get revenge is to become Emperor. And the only way to do that is to play along with Yeon Chul temporarily until he can gain enough power to take revenge. Ta Hwan fights against this though because he doesn’t want to betray Ki.  Ta Hwan looks miserable and conflicted.

At a meeting with Wang Yoo, Ki and the Goryeo loyals and  Yeon Chul, and his sons, Wang Go and Yeon loyals – Ta Hwan says Goryeo soldiers tried to kill him, on King Wang Yoo’s orders. Yeon Chul smiles while Ki yells out that he’s lying. Then Ta Hwan says it was Commander Ki.  Ta Hwan looks at Ki with tears in his eyes but doesn’t take back anything. Yeon Chul orders Ki taken.

Ki is locked inside with her Father, who is dying. She yells for help but no one comes. Commander Ki dies with Ki screaming and crying his name.  Meanwhile, Ta Hwan begs on his knees for Yeon Chul not to kill him. He will be Yeon Chul’s puppet. Yeon Chul agrees to spare him as long as he marries his daughter,Danashri. Well, that’s lovely – that makes us all one happy family.

At court, Ta Hwan states that Prince Wang Yoo is to be stripped of his crown and exiled to Daidu. Those who took part in the plot are to be enslaved. And in honor of him becoming Emperor – Goryeo will send 200 girls to be concubines and 100 boys as eunuchs. He also demands silver and gold and a bunch of other stuff he forgets.  

On the way out Wang Go bows and asks Ta Hwan not to forget him. Ta Hwan bends close and whispers (in a strong, commanding voice) that he’s not likely to forget the man who tried to kill him. That wipes the smiles right off Wang Go’s face. In Goryeo, girls and women are hunted down and rounded up to be concubines. Wang Yoo joins the procession, leading his people to Yeon to be slaves. When he is injured, Ki is left to drag him along behind by herself.Ta Hwan is on his way to his first day at court and meets the Empress Dowager along the way. When they arrive, he’s afraid to sit down on the throne.  Yeon Chul insists before the coronation, he must marry his daughter. Empress Dowager isn’t happy about that. 

Baek-Ahn and Tal Tal fill Ta Hwan in on all the details about Yeon Chul’s daughter, Danashri. He goes to meet her the next day and both seem pleasantly surprised by the other. 

Ki-Se “smells” that Ki is a woman and rips open her shirt. He orders her dressed and brought to his tent, while Byung-Soo stares at Ki like he can’t believe it. Two of the Goryeo slaves are brought in to dress her up and apply make-up.  She’s brought to Ki-Se’s quarters and he’s momentarily speechless at her beauty. She’s forced to her knees, her hands tied.

Ki immediately scouts the room, finding the location of the cross-bows. Ki-Se bends down to look at her face, claiming everything about her is beautiful. While he blathers on about catching animals to kill, eat and skin (lovely guy) Ki notices the ceramic drinking glass in his hand. He announces she will be his concubine when they reach Yuan. Byung-Soo is eavesdropping outside and is shocked to hear this. Ki calls Ki-Se an insect which makes him laugh.

Ki insults him, saying the only reason people fear him is because of his powerful Father, Yeonchul. this was obviously a sore spot with Ki-Se, he snaps and breaks the bottle in his hand, telling her to shut up about his Father. He slaps her to the ground and Ki grabs one of the broken pieces to cut her hands free. 

Byung-Soo is terrified that Ki will somehow be able to bewitch Ki-Se which would be bad for him so he goes to Wang Yoo’s tent. He asks Wang Yoo if he was aware Ki is a girl. Wang Yoo is shocked.Byung-Soo goes on to let him know Ki is currently being held in Ki-Se’s tent – which he knows will send Wang Yoo out in a flash. Ki-Si threatens Ki not to bring up his Father again but she head-butts him and grabs one of the cross-bows with her now free hands. 

She demands two horses, Ki-Si asks if she’s planning to escape with the Goryeo King? He informs her that if he dies, her King will die too – which makes her hesitate long enough for him to grab her. 

He throws her on bed, intent on raping her but Wang Yoo arrives to pull him off. He picks up an iron candle-stick to kill Ki-Se when Ki stops him. She grabs Wang Yoo around the waist, telling him she’s dreamed of avenging her Mother’s death by killing Ki-Se too but he can’t kill him here. They run outside to escape – only to find themselves surrounded by soldiers courtesy of Byung-Soo. So now Wang Go, both creepy brothers and all the soldiers are aware Ki is a girl.

Yong-hyun, Moo-song, Shin-woo and Bul-hwa (All Wang Yoo’s men) are outside the camp, discussing how to save Ki and Wang Yoo. They make a plan to set the tribute things on fire so while the soldiers are putting it out, they can rescue them. Ki and Wang Yoo are tied, back-to-back to a pole. Wang Yoo wonders how she’s been able to endure things as a girl even grown men couldn’t endure. Ki tells him nothing changes if she’s a girl, she will still serve him as before. He tears up and tries to keep from crying out. His men set fire to a tent full of items for Yuan tribute but end up getting caught. 

In Yuan, Yeonchul tells the Dowager Empress that he’s set a wedding date. Angry but not able to stop him, she insists Danashri go through “training” to be the Empress. Her walking “gracefully” is an epic fail, she eats like a pig and she can’t recite her lessons.

Ta Hwan is delighted when he hears Danashri pitched a tantrum, saying she wouldn’t do it anymore. Danashri has an argument with Dowager Empress, threatening her that once she becomes Empress – she will change all the rules of the inner court. She’s not giving up. Ta Hwan walks with Danashri in the gardens, flattering her. She makes all sorts of demands that he agrees to but once she leaves – he orders the flowers she loves to be torn out. 

Baek-Ahn feels he’s been exiled by Yeonchul, he didn’t even give them any men to fight with. Wang Go and the  brothers decide to send Wang Yoo to fight with Baek-Ahn with the idea that he will die there. They go to inform Wang Yoo where he’s going. Ki begs to be sent along but she’s informed she’s going to a place worse than hell. Before being separated, Wang Yoo grabs Ki’s hand. She cries, telling him he must stay alive. He promises to stay alive and come for her. Their fingers are pulled apart as Wang Yoo is dragged out, yelling her name.

Ki-Se informs Wang Yoo he’s being sent away but his only concern is Ki. Ki-Se torments him by saying he’s going to make her his slave for life. The procession to Yuan continues with Ki now dressed as a girl and tied up in front. When she falters, Ki-Se actually looks concerned? Wang Go notices that Ki-Se can’t keep his eyes from her. Meanwhile, Wang Yoo and his men are taken to the border.Baek-Ahn and Tal Tal arrive at the border camp to discover the men are starving and don’t have proper weapons. He quickly discovers all the weapons have been sold and the men in charge are just letting the army starve while they party. He kills the lead guy while Tal Tal reads out the new rules for the rest of them. Wang Go threatens Ki that it’s her fault he lost the throne he was supposed to get so he makes sure she gets no food. Ki-Se watches this from behind a tent.

He has Ki brought to him while he’s eating and offers her food. She refuses. He gives her a choice – once they reach Yuan, she can become a slave for life in the Royal Palace or become his concubine. She chooses to be a slave for life and silently promises Ki-Se she will kill him – after she kills Ta Hwan.  At the Palace, Ta Hwan is practicing shooting arrows and remembers what Ki taught him. It doesn’t do any good, his arrows still fall short of the target.

Dowager Empress has one of her court ladies give Danashri a gift of incense that smells really good but will make her infertile. Danashri thinks the gift is a bribe, the Dowager Empress is trying to get on her good side. She’s plans to make the Dowager Empress “retire” her position once she becomes the empress.

Ki-Se rides into Yuan with the slaves, Ki right at the front. She’s stunned by everything she sees in the market and stares around the Palace once they arrive. Eunuch Dok Man arrives to escort the new palace maids but Ki-Se points to Ki and tells him he wants her. Just then, Ta Hwan passes by and asks who they are. Informed they’re slaves from Goryeo, he suddenly misses Ki.

They’re sent to bathe and change clothes so Eunuch Dok Man can sort them into specific areas of duty. Red ribbon means Palace maid, blue ribbon means musuri slave (in charge of odd chores) and yellow ribbon means you’ll be sent out of the Palace to a brothel. The lady in charge wants to send Ki out once she sees the arrow scar on her arm but Dok Man asks where she got the wound. Ki tells him her Father was a hunter so her insists she be made a musuri. 

Ki is taken to meet the musuri room leader, who is making other girls massage her. Right away, she orders Ki to massage her legs then slaps her because she’s doing it too hard. All the girls circle Ki while team leader Jo snarks that she obviously doesn’t understand where she is. As she’s about to slap Ki again, a maid enters.Yeonchul is angry that Wang Yoo wasn’t brought to Yuan but Wang Go lies that the Goryeo King asked to go to the battlefield. Uh huh, okay. At the border camp, the other creepy brother, Ja-Hae arrives with Wang Yoo and his men. Baek-Ahn realizes he was ordered here to die. That night, Ki is attacked by the other girls who drag her out of bed and take her to team leader Jo. Ta Hwan happens to be passing by and wonders why the light in on in that room?

The other girls hold Ki while team leader Jo brings out a whip. Just then, a knock is heard at the door and they realize the Emperor is standing outside. They all panic while Ki looks anxious. Team leader Jo orders Ki untied and hides the whip. Ta Hwan’s eunuch enters and demands to know what they’re doing. They lie that they’re “training” the new girl.Once they leave, team leader Jo wants to proceed but Ki ends up kicking ALL their asses.  She grabs team leader Jo by the throat and threatens her not to bother Ki again. She then runs outside, hoping to catch Ta Hwan.

The next day, she meets another girl from Goryeo, Hong Dan. She questions her about Ta Hwan and is told the most outrageous stuff – he’s up early, he’s diligent, he’s hard-working, he signs important papers for the country, does martial arts and he studies very late into the night. She’s told Ta Hwan is getting married soon and immediately makes plans to be included in the ceremony. Team leader Jo agrees because she’s now terrified of Ki.  While working in the kitchen, Ki manages to smuggle a knife out and practices throwing it. At the border camp, Ja-Hae demands Baek-Ahn get rid of  Wang Yoo but Baek-Ahn doesn’t much care for the idea. Wang Yoo and his men are forced to bow to the Yuan Generals over and over. *tears up*

Yeonchul has a family meeting with Ki-Se and his spoiled daughter, Danashii. Ki-Se gives his sister a gift of perfume to help Ta Hwan fall in love with her but she refuses it – saying he’s already in love with her, she doesn’t need it. Yeonchul tells her she must get pregnant on her first night and Ki-Se attempts to explain how Ta Hwan will get all heated upTa Hwan is getting the full “consummation night” lesson from his Eunuch, Gol-ta – even how to kiss.  When he doesn’t show much happiness or excitement, Gol-ta asks if he’s ever felt that excitement. Ta Hwan ponders for a moment and then remembers Ki sleeping on his chest and hugging him. 

Ki-Se meets Dok Man and demands to know why he sent Ki to work. He orders Ki to suffer but not to let her die.  In other words, torture her until she begs to go to him. That’s not likely to happen since our girl is tough. Ki learns how many steps away Ta Hwan will be and practices throwing her knife that far. During the ceremony, the Dowager Empress and Yeonchul glare at each other. Ki-Se searches and finds Ki standing with all the other palace maids. He smiles as he watches her switch places with another girl to get closer.  Ta Hwan arrives and sits, yawning. Danashri is carried in to meet him. As they approach each other, Ki readies herself to throw the knife – but Ki-Se suddenly appears right beside her and whispers that it’s not too late to change her mind. He can offer her clothing, wealth and splendor. Ki is angry she missed her chance to kill Ta Hwan and cries in frustration.

The border camp is attacked, Wang Yoo is despondent to see his people – Goryeo men dying in front of him. He fights until the only ones left are Wang Yoo and his men and Baek-Ahn and his men – plus Byung-Soo and creepy brother Ja-Hae. Wang Yoo is ordered to Baek-Ahn’s tent. He’s angry and accuses Baek-Ahn of letting those men die on purpose – because they’re Goryeo. Baek-Ahn claims the Goryeo men won’t fight for Yuan – which means they will die.Wang Yoo asks to be appointed the commander which angers Byung-Soo. Wang Yoo says Byung-Soo ran away during the fight but Ja-Hae is also against it. Tal Tal speaks up, saying if they lose this war – they will all be be-headed so he’s in favor of giving Wang Yoo command. Baek-Ahn suggests a duel between Wang Yoo and Byung-Soo – winner will take command.

That night, Danashri is preparing for the consummation, she uses the perfume Ki-Se gave her. Ta Hwan is trying to put it off until the last-minute  when the Dowager Empress arrives. She tells him he should go to the consummation – but he must not get her pregnant. Yeonchul is getting old and won’t be around much longer. Once he’s gone, Ta Hwan can take back the power and get revenge but he must not let Danashri get pregnant. She will find him a suitable concubine.Ki attempts to sneak out, knowing Ta Hwan will be at the new Empress chambers and hoping for another opportunity to kill him. She’s caught by eunuch Dok Man .Ta Hwan arrives to find Danashri waiting for him, she pours him a drink. Ki is interrogated by Dok Man and explains she has the knife to protect herself from Ki-Se. Dok Man accuses her of lying, who wouldn’t want to belong to the future Empress’s brother. Ki yells that he killed her Mother, that’s why.

Dok Man schools Ki on the fact that even if she were to die, she wouldn’t be the only one to die – many of them would die, that’s the way things work in the Palace. The person who talks dies, the person who hears dies, and the person who listens dies too. He orders her punished and beats her lower legs.Back at our consummation, Ta Hwan is getting drunk while Danashri angrily gets impatient, laying on the bed like a log. Ta Hwan yells for more wine but Gol-ta reminds him this is the consummation night. He approaches the bed, tells Danashri she’s beautiful and passes out on top of her.

Ta Hwan visits Dowager Empress the next morning – without Danashri.This sends Dowager Empress into a fury, that Danashri is again ignoring protocol and not being respectful. She demands a morning assembly with everyone in attendance. Danashri refuses to go and instead, meets with her own staff. She can’t remember all their names so insultingly makes up names for them, such as “Pumpkin” because she’s so ugly, “Charcoal briquette” because her face is so dark, “Wild boar” since she’s so fat

Our ladies have a face-off on the main bridge. Dowager Empress snipes that she knows Ta Hwan didn’t even touch Danashri? She goes on to say that’s never happened before, that the Emperor wouldn’t even be tempted by a young lady’s abilities to capture his heart. The implication being Danashri doesn’t possess those abilities. Danashri says she will have to teach her.

She then says she heard that once an Emperor dies, the Empress has to shave her head and become a nun for the rest of her life – which wipes the smirk off Dowager Empress’s face. Danashri wonders why Dowager Empress is still here? Dowager Empress asks if she’s hoping she leaves? Danashri says she keeps harping about etiquette but she needs to set an example.Dowager Empress demands a concubine be brought to her. She inspects this girl, claiming everything about her is pleasant. Dok Man says he picked her out of ten thousand candidates. Dowager Empress learns she is from Goryeo and explains to her that tonight – she could climb the steps to the throne. She also asks for a musuri to serve this girl, someone from Goryeo. Dok Man goes straight to Ki and tells her she will be serving in the concubine Palace tonight.

Byung-Soo and Wang Yoo prepare for their duel, it will be a fight to the death unless one of them surrender. At the palace, Ki brings tea for the concubine and tells her it will warm the body. The girl says she heard Ki was from Goryeo and tells Ki she was born in Goryeo. Suddenly Dok Man rushes in to say Ta Hwan is on his way. He tells Ki to quickly remove the tea-table.As Ki rushes out, she runs right into Ta Hwan. She gasps and the teapot slides off the tray. Ta Hwan stares at her, his eyes widening in surprise. She bends down to pick up the pot (which also allows her to hide her face) Ta Hwan asks her to lift her face. He asks again and closing her eyes in frustration, she finally looks up at him.

Dowager Empress shows up to try forcing him to visit Lady Park. He’s not interested in her dancing and gets angry with Dowager Empress. He storms out, passing by Ki and glancing at her again.

Danashri  is in her quarters .  When the maid asks if she wants Ta Hwan to be called, Danashri  declines saying that a confident woman wouldn’t be eager. She believes Ta Hwan will come begging for her favors soon enough. Well, she could be right – if her Daddy threatens to kill everyone. Lady Park is bathed and prepared, asking Ki to help her out since Goryeo people should stick together.Dowager Empress has Lady Park delivered to his quarters in a blanket. When he demands Lady Park get out, Dowager Empress gets on her knees outside his room, begging him to remember his Father and younger Brother. Ki hears this but I’m not sure any of it penetrates her vengeful thoughts. The lights turn out and we’re left to assume our Emperor does what he’s told with Lady Park. Lady Park is taken out, still wrapped in the blanket. Ki tells herself she will have another opportunity to kill him.

Wang Yoo fights with Byung-Soo and is almost beaten because cheaterpants lined his sword with lead. Wang Yoo has a vision of Ki telling him he can’t give up. He beats Byung-Soo with his fists and then outs that he’s a scumbag who cheated. Byung-Soo yields but the crows still yells for his death. Instead of killing him, Wang Yoo calls him a coward and walks away. He gives a heartwarming speech to his men about fighting to live and fighting to get back home. They vow to follow him.

The men are given crappy weapons and discover Byung-Soo has been given the title of 2nd in command. They also learn they will be the lead in the fight against the Turks – which pretty much means they’re being led to slaughter as the first line usually falls immediately. The Turks appear – we learn the leader is called Batolu and wears a mask supposedly to cover scars on his face.

In the Palace,  Ki sharpens the chopstick she stole into a weapon while the other girls gossip. Ki-Se talks about rumors of her wedding night but  Danashri  is confident. They hear girlish laughter from the cleaning maids, Ki-Se is suspicious. It comes out that Ta Hwan has granted his “favors” to someone else and the girl is from Goryeo.  Danashri  orders all the Goryeo maids brought before her.She inspects all the girls and notices Lady Park won’t meet her eyes plus her hands are shaking. She orders Lady Park to be killed.  As Lady Park is led away, she seems to be sick which shocks everyone. Dowager Empress realizes it might be morning sickness and reminds  Danashri  it’s treason to endanger the Emperor’s heir.  Danashri  is left fuming.

Yeonchul angrily storms into Ta Hwan’s quarter, reminding Ta Hwan of the promises he made and threatens to kill everyone if  Danashri  sheds one tear. Ta Hwan runs out, saying he can’t breathe. He hides from his followers and sees Ki. He seeks her out among the washing, when she turns around, he’s right in front of her. She starts to grab the weapon from her hair but Ta Hwan’s court followers show up. Ta Hwan orders that Ki bring him some tea.Ta Hwan stares at Ki as she pours tea and orders her to look both right and left while he studies her profile. He asks if she has a brother in Goryeo names Seung Nyang. When she denies it, he claims that guy was prettier than her anyway. He talks about that guy being brave and true. Ki glances around, noticing that no one is looking which makes her reach for the weapon. Ta Hwan gets right up in her face again  and pulls the pin from her hair, throwing it away.

He gives her a lovely, red ornament for her hair .  Danashri  shows up and grabs it from Ta Hwan. Furious, she slaps Ki – thinking that she’s flirting with Ta Hwan. Ta Hwan stops her from slapping Ki a second time which infuriates  Danashri  even more so she yells that she’s telling her father and storms off. Lady Park watches Ki pick up the hair ornament and angrily throw it into the water.

Back at camp, the Turks attack but quickly retreat in order to keep their headquarters whereabouts unknown. The next day, while all the soldiers are sleeping the Turks attack again. They figure out this was the plan – to keep them from sleeping and attack both day or night. Wang Yoo thinks the reason for the mask is to make them believe Batolu never sleeps but he’s suspicious.

Sure enough, the masked rider returns to the Turk camp and informs the General behind a curtain that the attack was successful.  Wang Yoo comes up with a plan using an experienced tracker, a spy and someone to oversee making weapons. Creepy brother Ja Hae and Byung-Soo still plan to kill Wang Yoo but Wang Yoo and his men are planning too.Ki sneaks into the Emperor’s room while he’s sleeping with Lady Park.  She pulls out the sharpened chopstick to stab him but Lady Park stops her. Lady Park calmly informs her if she kills the Emperor – all the Goryeo servants inside the Palace will die, every single one of them. She’s heard about Ki – dressing as a man and saving the deposed Goryeo King. She wants revenge also but true revenge will be living, enduring and stomping on those who did this to the Goryeo people.

Ki dreams of Wang Yoo in front of her, expressing disappointment that she put her fellow Goryeo people in danger. She doesn’t care, she wants revenge on those who killed her parents. She cries that her heart is black with despair. He says that he misses her but when she turns, he’s not there. It’s all a dream, when Ki wakes up she’s very ill. Her friend, Hong-Dan helps care for her.Ta Hwan practices shooting arrows, wishing that Ki could see how well he’s doing. She brings tea and listens as he goes through the lesson she taught him. The arrows fall short, Ta Hwan asks Ki if she’s laughing at him. With her fever burning, she looks up at him but sees Wang Yoo smiling at her. She softly calls out “Your Majesty” and then faints into Ta Hwan’s arms. He yells for the Royal doctors.

Later, both Danashri  and Dowager Empress are arguing over giving Lady Park a title. Ta Hwan isn’t listening, he’s thinking about the girl who fainted. Both women storm out, vowing revenge on the other. Gol-ta wonders why he’s so interested in that low-born servant, Ta Hwan tells him she looks like the person who saved his life. Gol-ta suggests transferring her. Ta Hwan dreams of Ki coming to him, all happy and flirty, vowing to be loyal. He giggles to himself. 

The real Ki is still ill and dreaming of Wang Yoo. At camp, Wang Yoo fires an arrow signal to his men who are preparing to ambush the Turks. The Turks fall into Wang Yoo’s traps. Inside the camp, Baek-Ahn and Tal Tal wonder what’s happening while Ja-Hae is happy Wang Yoo will be killed. Byung-Soo is tied up to keep him from interfering.  The Turks circle back but are met head on by Wang Yoo and his men. Wang Yoo fights with the masked Batolu and both end up injured.

At daybreak, Baek-Ahn, Tal Tal, Byung-Soo and Ja-Hae discover the dead bodies are Turks. We see that the masked Batolu is actually a girl. In the Palace, Ta Hwan calls for Ki-Se to ask him about Ki and reminds Ki-Se that he ordered Ki released. Ki-Se lies that Ki is living well with his brothers and sisters. Ki-Se decides to quickly take Ki out of the Palace before Ta Hwan discovers her.
Ta Hwan seeks out Ki to ask about the hair accessory – she snarks that she lost it.  He calls her a brat and Gol-ta tells Ki that the Emperor wants her for his special servant. Ta Hwan asks if she likes being in the Great Hall. She requests a transfer back which flusters Ta Hwan. He gets angry with Gol-ta, who thinks Ki is playing hard-to-get. I love Gol-ta but he’s as clueless as our  Emperor.

The next morning, Ta Hwan orders everyone out except for Ki and orders her to wash him. She’s gonna end up killing him for this. What follows is adorable. Ki ties a towel around his neck while he gazes up at her, his eyes all sparkly.  She washes his neck and face but she’s a bit rough. She slaps and pinches him applying lotion while Gol-ta calls her a rotten girl under his breath. She washes Ta Hwan’s feet and he wiggles his toes at her like he did back while bathing in the tub.He asks if she doesn’t like the Great Hall, the work is easier and the pay more. She grabs his toes and pulls hard. He orders her out but doesn’t transfer her back yet. He makes her fan him – complaining it’s too hot but then too cold. When Ki glares at him, he orders her to laugh. She fake laughs so he asks her to smile. She grits her teeth and smiles at him, he laughs. The atmosphere changes quickly when Gol-ta comes to tell him Yeonchul wants to see him. Ki notices his nervousness and how quickly his expression changes.Yeonchul makes him stamp some Royal orders but throws one of them in the trash. When Ta Hwan asks about it, Yeonchul berates him and orders him to spend the night with Danashri . When he arrives at her bed chambers, she makes everyone leave and forces him to look at her while he removes her outer robes. They lay side-by-side on the bed but Ta Hwan doesn’t touch her. When she approaches him, he gets up to blow out the candles and then proceeds to sleep. OUCH! The next morning,  Danashri  realizes she will never have his heart and throws a tantrum.Dowager Empress tries to comfort Ta Hwan that  Danashri  won’t conceive so not to worry but Ta Hwan yells at her – exactly what is his role in this Palace? Why is he even alive? She tells him to have courage and wait for the right time. Ki brings him tea and he begins to talk about “that fellow” who looks like her. He thinks that guy will hate him but Ta Hwan considers him his only friend. He talks about killers chasing them and what that fellow said to him which gave him the courage to jump.He begs her to give him courage. She sorry but she can’t help him. He sadly admits it’s his mistake thinking she’s that person and orders her transferred back as she wishes. She leaves, turning to stare at him with tears in her eyes as the door close. 

Baek-Ahn wants to reward Wang Yoo but Wang Yoo requests his soldiers be rewarded. Baek-Ahn agrees and order Tal Tal to provide meat and wine for those men. He and Wang Yoo drink to the victory. At the Turk’s camp, Bi-Soo who is Batolu’s daughter talks about Tal Tal and General Baek-Ahn with her lead man. She wonders who Wang Yoo is.

Wang Yoo takes Batolu’s horse out for a run and meets Ja-Hae, who yells at him for being arrogant. Ja-Hae draws his sword but falls off his horse. (LMAO) Wang Yoo is informed they’ve had problems with the horses lately. During a meeting, Baek-Ahn is told there are 5,000 Turks in the enemy camp. He plans to use Wang Yoo to lure them out since the masked Batolu knows his face.

When the Turkish soldiers arrive, Wang Yoo notices an out-of-control horse and realizes the noise the Turks make also disturbs and wears down the horses. In the Palace, Ki-Se informs both Yeonchul and  Danashri  that’s it been confirmed: Lady Park is pregnant. Ki-Se plans to use Ki to get Lady Park and Dowager Empress expelled from court, along with Ki.They try using room leader Yeon-hwa but she fails the task by looking inside the envelope Tana Shiri gives her. Meanwhile, Wang Yoo releases the masked Batolu’s horse and orders 2 of his men to follow it back to their camp. Eunuch Shin-Woo and Yong-hyun are taken prisoner at the Turkish camp and meet Bi-Soo. She thinks they’re just thieves.

Ki-Se runs into Ki at the Palace and when he touches her face, worrying at how she looks – she shoves a basket of laundry at him. He laughs that she’s still the same feisty person. Ta Hwan sees them talking and his suspicions about that palace servant are again brought forward in his mind. He follows Ki as she’s hanging up sheets, then hides and calls out her name. When she turns around, she doesn’t see anyone but Ta Hwan is there – watching her expression. He wonders again if she could possibly be that person? He orders Gol-ta to send someone to Goryeo to find that kid. Danashri  tries using Ki next, who is smart enough to figure out that she’s being tested. When Ki delivers the envelope,  Danashri  shows up just in time to save her life. So even though Ki looked inside the envelope, she still delivered it and refused to say who gave it to her which makes  Danashri  believe she can trust her. She questions Ki about her attachment to Ta Hwan but Ki makes it clear she wishes to be sent back to Goryeo.

Danashri  says if she follows orders, she will see that Ki’s wish comes true. She gives Ki a poison powder to get rid of Lady Park and that bastard child.