Original subtitles

Sungkyunkwan Scandal

Park Yoo-chun

Park Min-young

Song Joong-ki

Yoo A-in

Seo Hyo-rim

Ahn Nae-sang

Kim Kap-soo

Jo Sung-ha Lee Jae-yong

Emergency!

Kim Yunsik...

is the son of Dr. Kim Seungheon?

What are you doing?

Professor! Professor! It's Kim Yunsik!

You can all leave now.

We should at least go in and say hi.

I am ordering you to leave.

He needs rest.

No one is to enter the infirmary without my permission.

It's an order.

Yes, sir.

If you're going to see the proctor, don't.

You don't want me to hurt him because he's a Noron like you?

This happened because of me.

I should take care of it.

Professor.

I'll get going now.

Were you looking for this?

Are you a girl?

Answer me, Kim Yunsik.

Are you a girl?

No one is to enter the Infirmary?

But why not have a real doctor tend to Kim Yunsik?

Strange.

Aren't you curious

about what's going on with the Big Man?

The Big Man?

Kim Yunsik.

He's said to be very big, acknowledged by Choseon herself.

Whatever.

That's what I mean.

It doesn't go with his delicate little face.

There's something to the Big Man.

A dangerous secret

no one can find out.

Please forgive me.

Forgiveness?

Girls are forbidden to enter Sungkyunkwan.

Why did you come here?

I had to survive.

It was for survival.

I had to make money for my mother and sick brother.

I took the main exam to feed my family, but one thing led to another.

I'm telling you the truth.

Please believe me, professor.

I don't have a female student.

And I don't have a student

who only makes excuses.

You and your family have committed a crime,

and the rightful punishment is death.

My family didn't do anything wrong.

Please punish me and me alone.

I will accept it wholeheartedly.

You're the one who said it was your mother and brother that caused this.

They must be punished

for forcing you into this.

Do you get it now?

Making excuses will not solve anything.

Begone and await my decision.

No one should know about this until I've made my decision.

That is the only way to keep from exacerbating the situation.

- Yunsik. - Yunsik.

Are you okay?

There's something to Kim Yunsik.

Everyone's out to defend him.

Yup. A Noron and a Soron have come together.

Soron-Noron unity.

It's what the king yearns for.

That frail little fellow Kim Yunsik is better than the king.

You were a coward.

It should've been me, not Kim Yunsik.

This is my last warning.

Come to West Hall and stay with the Noron.

I will make you head of the freshman class.

But that's my position.

If you want, I can recommend you as the next proctor.

What if I refuse?

That's why you still have a way to go.

Because of your childish stubbornness, you have a Noron,

a Soron, and a Namin on your team.

It has become the symbol of trans-factional unity.

What's wrong with unity?

Unity?

Harmony that transcends factional divides?

I don't believe in such a repulsive notion.

Trans-factional unity

is a means to use the Soron and the Namin

to push the Noron out of power.

It's an elaborate ruse concocted by the king.

If by any chance your team wins the Grand Archery Contest,

it will be a show of support...

for the king's plan.

That is, you will be shooting at the Noron and your father.

You're right.

I hadn't thought about what it would mean

for our team to win.

But now that I know...

we will have to do it.

We will win.

What?

We won't know unless we try.

I'd like to find out whether the king is concocting a repulsive scheme

or you're blinded by your thirst for power.

Go ahead and try.

One never forgets what one has learned with his body.

Forgiveness? Girls are forbidden to enter Sungkyunkwan.

This is an act of disrespect to the king and to the natural order.

You and your family have committed a crime...

and the rightful punishment is death.

So you're a man after all, unwilling to show your tears to anyone.

Stay.

I'll leave.

Hey, Big Man.

If you're going to cry, let it all out.

Be a man.

Is he nuts?

First place?

How does he expect his team to win?

We have the best archer there is, our proctor.

Don't worry.

Lee Seonjun can say whatever he wants to,

but there is no way his team can win.

Whoa!

What are you doing?

How does it feel?

What is the meaning of this?

Now you know what it feels like

to have someone play with your life.

You'd better watch out.

Next time, I'll make sure I hit you right here.

He's insane.

This is all Insu's fault.

He's probably keeping Lee Seonjun from coming to see me.

He must be missing me terribly,

just as much as I miss him.

Just let it go.

If he's too scared of your brother to come see you,

he's no good.

He's not scared.

He's just worried that my brother will chastise me.

He's just concerned about me.

You don't know anything.

What do you know about love?

This isn't the book I asked for.

It's a special present for our most valued customers.

It is a tragic tale of forbidden love.

The son of a government minister and a servant girl fall in love.

But it turns out they have the same father.

Worse yet, the servant girl falls terminally ill.

It is a heart-wrenching epic saga.

Please allow us to love.

And?

And what?

Does it work out?

Well...

They do love each other, so you can say it worked out,

but they can't get married, so I guess it didn't.

It has to work out.

If the main characters can't live happily ever after,

it's mean to lead the readers on.

Very unique.

- Say... - Yes, miss.

About that love letter.

What happened to the scribe?

All he did was show off.

You said he was the best writer at Sungkyunkwan.

You have to understand, miss.

There's a big event coming up there.

What is it?

The Grand Archery Contest.

The Grand Archery Contest?

Are you okay?

How are you feeling?

What's Kim Yunsik's ailment?

He needs rest.

You forbade anyone from going near him.

And yet you did not prescribe any medicine,

nor did you get a real doctor to see him.

All right. I'll let that pass.

It may be a mild ailment that requires neither medicine nor doctor.

I'll let it slide.

But this.

You left no records of Kim Yunsik's condition.

Why is that?

Interesting. Keep going.

It may be negligence on your part,

or Kim Yunsik's ailment is not something that should be recorded.

That is,

his physical status is such that he should not be in Sungkyunkwan.

It's one or the other.

What is that that you want to say?

It's just a student's desire to seek the truth.

Do you know that a desire entails accountability, Gu Yongha?

Sungkyunkwan's infirmary records are confidential.

A mere student is not supposed to have access to them.

If anyone finds out,

you'll get ten lashes.

Professor.

A teacher should protect his student, right?

With my respects, professor.

Your servant, Minister of War Ha Yugu, appeals to you out a sense of loyalty.

Your predecessor, King Yeongjo, banned the Grand Archery Contest,

concerned about its harmful effects.

Please recognize the will

of your grandfather and former king.

We ask for your reconsideration, Your Majesty.

- Minister. - Yes, Your Majesty.

A parent considers his dead child a sinner and buries him in his heart.

But a child

who has lost his parent seeks the traces of his late parent.

That's just a human thing to do.

Am I right, Minister Mun?

Well...

I don't see a connection

between the Grand Archery Contest and human duty, Your Majesty.

The Grand Archery Contest

was something my late father

greatly enjoyed.

Consider it one son's longing and show of respect to his father.

For whatever it's worth, I am the king of this nation.

I believe I have the right to indulge myself a bit.

The king has come along way.

He is no longer the hotheaded boy who declared

he was the son of Prince Sado upon assuming the throne.

He has only become weakhearted with age.

He's making an appeal to sympathy, so one can't even get angry at him.

It is the record of the king's private meetings over the past few days.

Jeong Yakyong.

Jeong Yakyong.

Jeong Yakyong.

He sends his most trusted aide Jeong Yakyong to Sungkyunkwan

and announces the Grand Archery Contest to honor his late father.

And he is sending secret orders

to Jeong Yakyong every day.

I was a fool.

Dr. Jeong Yakyong wasn't demoted.

You said...

one should be willing to give up one's life for the right cause.

I don't think I'm good enough

to follow in your footsteps, my dear teacher.

Both "Geumdeungjisa"

and the Yunhui matter

are tasks too difficult for me to handle.

Teacher.

Mencius said, "When the heavens are about to have a man take on a major task..."

When the heavens are about to have a man take on a major task...

When the heavens are about to have a man take on a major task...

Heaven will make him undergo

great hardship...

What are you doing here?

If you're that cold, you can study inside.

My mother won't let me study.

She says learning is poison to a girl.

Then don't study.

You'll be warm, at least.

I don't get you.

Why do you tell me to follow my mother's will

without asking me what I want?

I'm not my mother. I'm me.

I'm just saying because you look cold and tired.

But because I've been studying hard, I'm the fastest writer in town.

What is you name?

Yunhui!

Again?

Kim Yunhui.

My name is Kim Yunhui.

You shouldn't work too hard, mother.

Thanks to Yunhui, we won't have to worry about paying for medicine.

She would give you an earful if she saw you working like this.

You know

what's funny?

Knowing that my child will be wearing this,

even my visions seems to have gotten better.

So it's for Yunhui.

I realized I never made her a proper dress.

She's in her prime now, but she's always wearing...

The colors are beautiful.

This will look great on her.

Is that beautiful-faced Kim Yunsik really the son of Kim Seungheon?

Dr. Jeong...

Yes, Your Majesty.

The boy had guts unbefitting his delicate look.

He must take after his father.

I must meet him.

Pardon?

His father protected "Geumdeungjisa."

Shouldn't the son find it?

No, Your Majesty.

No?

Finding "Geumdeungjisa"

is a matter of great import to the nation of Joseon.

Kim Yunsik is but a young student.

It would be too much for him.

But you can help him.

More importantly,

he doesn't know what his father did.

You have never defied me.

So given that this is coming from you,

I will trust you and won't ask any questions.

I can't wait for the Grand Archery Contest.

We should hurry if we want to train for the Grand Archery Contest.

The Big Man is ill.

Dr. Jeong wouldn't have discharged him if he weren't well enough.

Right?

Are you that hung up on winning?

Don't go, Big Man. You look way too pale.

No one should know about this until I've made my decision.

I will train.

Again.

Again.

Again.

Again.

Again!

Again!

Go to Sungkyunkwan.

Make my name proud.

Again!

Kim Yunsik, you are now officially a student of Sungkyunkwan.

Did I bore you?

It was fun.

It was fun.

It was the first time I realized just how interesting the "Analects" are.

Again!

Are you a girl?

Please forgive me.

I don't have a female student.

This is an act of disrespect to the king and to the natural order.

You and your family have committed a crime,

and the rightful punishment is death.

Again!

Again!

He's like a slave driver.

He's dying to win.

He wants to prove to the king that he's good at both literary and martial arts.

He's so pigheaded.

And cold.

Again!

Again!

Crazy Horse isn't even thinking about the Grand Archery Contest,

and Kim Yunsik can't even hold the bow straight.

Do you have a strategy for victory?

I will let Lee Seonjun have his way.

Are you planning to let him win?

Goodness gracious.

Of course not.

I didn't think so.

I will let him have his way

and teach him a lesson he will learn with his body.

So...

- You all prepare accordingly. - Yes, proctor.

The king will be walking over this very ground.

There should not be a single speck of dust!

The king will be sitting on that!

There should not be even a tiny scratch!

The king will be using those bowls.

There should not be a single speck of chili powder!

Do you want to die?

Hurray! The king is coming to Sungkyunkwan.

He's coming to see Choi Sinmuk, yours truly.

Say, director...

Shouldn't you organize a banquet?

- Pass. - Pass.

Fail.

Pass.

Pass.

- Fail. - Fail.

Fail.

Fail.

- Fail! - Fail.

Fail!

Fail.

Pass.

More than pass. Much more than pass!

I will come with my girls, director.

You? You're coming to Sungkyunkwan?

Of course. it's the Grand Archery Contest attended by his majesty.

Thank you.

Please make sure none of your girls makes any mistake.

That goes without saying, director.

You look beautiful.

Choseon has fallen hard

for that pretty-faced scholar.

She's determined.

He hasn't come back since the freshman orientation.

This must be a first for Choseon.

Determined?

What determination does she need with a face like that?

I'm going to stop.

You haven't even begun.

I'm too tired. I can't go on.

How can you say you're tired?

You can't even hold the bow right.

How much longer will it take for you to make that bow a part of you?

Why don't you want to face the target head on?

Hey, Noron.

Is that all you ever think about, how to impress the king?

Is that all you care about?

It's all about success and power for you, isn't it?

- You're a Noron through and through. - Crazy Horse.

He almost had an arrow crack his head open.

Can't you see that he's scared?

But if he gives up because of fear,

he will never go near a bow again.

Making excuses will not change anything.

Making excuses? Watch what you say.

I've had it rougher than you can ever imagine!

While you had all the time in the world to master archery,

I was too busy making ends meet to even think about it.

You're Lee Seonjun, who needs no introduction,

while I'm a lowly Namin from a nameless family

who can't remember what his father looked like.

I'm Kim Yunsik.

That's why you need to grab this opportunity.

Winning the Grand Archery Contest will open many doors for you.

So

you're doing this for me?

Do you have any idea what has become of my life because of you?

You think anyone can change the world if he sets his mind to it, right?

But you have no idea how the world really is.

You were sheltered and pampered.

Going into government?

Grab this opportunity?

You take such opportunities for granted.

For me,

what you're saying

requires a miracle.

So don't lecture me again.

I might want to kill you.

Lee Seonjun!

Your bone's are fine,

but

the Grand Archery Contest...

This is just terrible!

I would give you my shoulder if I could.

Tell the kitchen to serve beef broth.

I don't believe this.

You don't think I can compete?

Don't worry about that.

Some rounds can be won by default.

I can fix it so that you can go all the way up to the semi-finals.

Professor.

I don't think

it would be a good idea.

Do you know who might've done this to you?

Is there anyone who might be holding a grudge against you?

More than one can't count.

That's right.

Did you do it?

You said you never liked him.

What do you take me for?

There's probably no one who hates him more than Kim Yunsik.

Did you see how Lee Seonjun kept pushing him?

I would've wanted to kill him myself.

Right, Big Man?

Gross!

I'm just saying...

But I'm so curious to find out who it was.

Right?

So you think I was behind it?

Because I was scared Lee Seonjun might win the Grand Archery Contest?

Me? Ha Insu?

I'm just saying,

some may think that's what went down.

Those fellows don't have the guts,

and this one does not care for dirty-handed tricks.

And I'm not that stupid.

If I wanted to bring down Lee Seonjun,

I would have done it a long time ago.

I'm the proctor of Sungkyunkwan.

That little twerp is no match for me.

I can wipe him off the school registry.

I can also beat him half to death.

How intimidating.

What I want is

for Lee Seonjun to submit to me on his own volition.

I'm giving him a chance to become my man.

Coldhearted.

Bullheaded.

Crazy.

Sir!

You can't train in that condition.

You can't even raise your right arm.

Are you out of your mind?

I've come to take you home.

I've never held the bow.

I'm aiming for a perfect score using my left arm.

A perfect score?

That would be five bull's-eyes.

What a show-off.

A perfect score with his left arm?

He's asking for a miracle.

If you need a miracle, I'm going to make it happen.

If I get five bull's-eyes,

you will have to take up archery again.

I have to compete in the Grand Archery Contest,

and to do so, I need you.

Sir!

What? He was hit by an arrow?

No, no.

He was training for the Grand Archery Contest

when a bunch of logs stacked to the side fell on him.

The king sent Jeong Yakyong to Sungkyunkwan.

But why?

The king sends secret orders to Jeong Yakyong.

What are the orders?

I just can't figure it out.

- I want to go. - Where?

To Sungkyunkwan.

But why?

The Grand Archery Contest.

We can't sit back and do nothing.

What do you mean?

Insu is the proctor.

We should go and give some snacks

to the students, at least.

I have a lot on my mind right now.

Daddy! We have to do it!

I'll take care of everything.

No!

And it's Sungkyunkwan.

Girls cannot enter its premises.

When will you grow up?

Sungkyunkwan is not your playground.

Hyeo-eun.

Yes?

You're taking care of everything, right?

Daddy!

Let's show them how generous the proctor's family is.

Not too blatantly, though.

Of course not.

Zengzi said, "A handsome, eloquent man is not necessarily virtuous."

Zengzi said, "I have three standards against which I assess myself."

Wow!

Is he human?

You got your wish.

You can compete against Lee Seonjun.

I thought you'd be happier.

Don't worry. He's not good enough to beat you.

Plus, Crazy Horse won't help him.

That's what makes it worse.

Why is he trying so hard to fight a battle he can't win?

I hate

dumb, stubborn mules like him.

The director insisted that I put out the fire.

He said that's the only way you would stop.

So please go back to your room and get some rest.

So he has to show himself to the king, eh?

He's a Noron. He should stick with the other Norons.

He's turning us Soron into his sidekicks.

Perhaps we should've broken his legs.

What kind of garbage is this that I am hearing?

Crazy Horse.

Are you responsible for what happened to Lee Seonjun?

Please keep your lips sealed.

You are a Soron, too.

Keep my lips sealed?

Keep my lips sealed?

Why? Because you know what you did was shameful?

- Mun Jaesin. - Say one more thing,

and I'll make sure I'll seal your lips for good.

If you need a miracle, I'm going to make it happen.

What are you thinking about, Big Man?

Oh...

Sir.

Why are you here at Sungkyunkwan?

Me?

I'm here to take a stand

against Joseon's backward class system.

I had no choice.

I was told I couldn't have concubines

if I didn't take the high exam, so here I am.

I'm here to see Dr. Jeong.

He might be in the infirmary.

Wait a moment, please.

One who sets out to realize his virtuous will...

- Pardon? - What comes after that?

Must have knowledge.

What does that mean?

For an idea or will to be truly virtuous,

it should be based on knowledge.

It explains how the contemplation of the world is the basis of knowledge.

Kim Yunsik, you pass with flying colors.

Pardon?

You pass this month's exam.

Your recitation flowed smoothly.

And you have prepared well

for a lesson not yet taught.

How did you know my name?

Your opinion on the "new people" in your text interpretation

was not bad.

It's yours.

My teacher gave it to me in my first year at Sungkyunkwan.

I couldn't. it's too much.

Then keep it and give it to a smart student of yours in the future.

- Yunsik! Yunsik! - Big Man! Big Man!

Go out and tell them

they're each getting a point off for rowdy behavior.

- Big Man! Big Man! - Yunsik! Yunsik!

- Kim Yunsik! - Yunsik!

- Big Man. - Hurry.

Come on.

Out of the way, fellows.

Sir!

Please make him stop, sir.

What if he falls ill? I'll get into so much trouble.

He's more stubborn than the toughest mule out there.

What are you doing?

You're not well, and you're soaking wet.

I told you.

If you need a miracle, I'm going to make it happen.

And I told you, too.

Don't meddle in my affairs any more.

Why are you doing this to me?

- Why? - Look at me!

Living as the son of a Noron you are so contemptuous of...

is not that fun.

No one can choose his own parents.

No one can choose in what form he is born.

We only have one choice.

We can choose how we are to live.

That's all we can do.

Did you say you're from a fallen family?

You find it unfair that you were born into hardship?

You want to complain, right?

So are you going to live your whole life feeling sorry for yourself?

You...

You don't know anything about me.

You were thrown into hardship,

but you are the only one

who can get yourself out of it.

Every human being stands before his target.

No can leave until he has used up all his arrows.

Remember this, Kim Yunsik.

You won't hit the bull's-eye with a crooked arrow.

Sir!

Hey, Big Man.

I don't like it when you let someone give you crap.

Listen, Big Man.

If anyone ever points

his finger at you again...

you respond with a punch.

Like this.

Is this...

It won't hurt any more.

Like this.

Bam.

Hey, Big Man!

I can't leave.

No. I won't leave.

What?

You can never kick me

out of Sungkyunkwan.

Kim Yunsik may not be my name,

but the verse his majesty gave a passing mark to

was written by me.

And

it was also his majesty

who ordered that I live and study here.

So why are you faulting me alone?

Are you trying to blame his majesty for your impertinence?

I just want to ask you what I've done so wrong.

You said learning is for the people.

Is a girl not one of the people?

If you want to study, you can do so at home.

Sungkyunkwan is a place for fostering government officials.

A girl has no place here.

Is it because men and women are different?

Yes.

But...

what if we aren't'?

What if I'm no different from the other students here?

What then?

What?

You said learning is about asking questions,

questions about what we take for granted.

What is it that you want to say?

Please give me a chance.

For the first time...

The world I showed you has come and gone.

But

those who pose questions will find the answers on their own.

I came to question

what it means to study.

Take the test under your name, Kim Yunsik.

For the first time, someone recognized my talent.

Is this...

It won't hurt any more.

And for the first time, someone took my side.

Please. I need to be given a chance.

Please let me ask questions about the world.

Please let me dream of a different world.

Please give me that chance.

Do you think a girl can compete on equal footing with the boys?

Well...

- Give it up. - Give it up.

If I come in first place, will that do?

First place?

Is he nuts?

Did you think it was the bow that shoots the arrow?

Let me down!

Just 30 times.

After that, I will keep you grounded even if you want to fly away.

I had no idea

I would run into you here.

There's only one remedy.

It's the riveting, the exciting Grand Archery Contest!

Bam!

He's injured!

Catch the Red Writer at the Grand Archery Contest tomorrow.

This is the final roll call.

Yes, sir.

Because Mun Jasin is not here,

Room two will not be able to compete in the Grand Archery Contest.