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

I wish I could have brought you here

under better circumstances.

Will you forgive me?

Oh my...

Dr. Jeong,

your students are unwilling to forgive the king.

- Professor. - Professor.

I have a secret mission for you.

I plan to build a new city in Hwaseong.

It will be a place where people can choose what they want to do,

whether it's commerce or farming.

There will be neither slaves nor nobility.

There will be no distinction based on wealth or class.

Factions and the people will unite.

It is the dream that my father handed down and it is

the dream to share with you all.

However, Your Majesty,

is the dream-like event really possible?

Oh, right. In this instance

I apologize for saying this but

I just forgot to start like this.

I just have not lived in a country like that at all...

I beg you to kill me, Your Majesty.

Don’t you kneel down to your friend.

The Trivium must have great talents.

I could do some things,

- but... - How could you measure

the success and gain before starting it ...

The world does not call it a dream.

It is termed a calculation.

Then, let me ask you now.

Why...

Is it forbidden to dream?

The governing that I dream of is very simple and easy

in giving food for hungry people

and money to those who worked.

Why can't it be a dream

and why can't we dream about it?

In this Hanyang, there are too many people who

make mockery out of my dream and call it a vainful one.

I plan to move the capital to Hwaseong

and build a new Joseon.

There is something that will make all this possible.

My grandfather, the former king, left me his last will

and told me to reveal it,

when I was ready to change the world.

Ten years ago...

Dr. Kim Seungheon and the then-proctor Mun Yeongsin

were ordered to bring the box

containing that will to the palace.

They suffered an unexpected accident...

and both the box and the will disappeared.

This is

Dr. Kim Seungheon's letter of resignation and last will.

Using this as a clue,

will you help me

find my grandfather's will?

Will you help me

realize my dream, my passion?

I want to find it.

I have to.

I barely remember my father's face.

I'd like to find out what kind of a man he was.

In searching for the lost will,

I will have to retrace my father's footsteps,

which I hope will allow me to get to know him.

I want to know

what kind of man he is

what kind of life he has lived.

Please help me.

Crazy Horse?

I need to do this to see

if the world that pathetic Mun Yeongsin so wanted

will actually come to be.

I will search for his last will.

Crazy Horse?

That pathetic soul was my brother.

Is that what was? So you've been...

Mun Jaesin and Kim Yunsik

are ideal for this mission,

but the other two...

Lee Seonjun's the son of a Noron,

and the other fellow is neither a Namin nor a Soron.

Who did you say it was? Dr. Jeong.

It is Gu Yongha.

I could not understand your profound meaning to

render the secret mission for him.

Profound meaning ...

It seems like praising me, but

isn't it like criticizing my imprudence?

Gu Yongha, that interesting kid, too,

is a part of the new Joseon

I want to build.

I am not interested.

Yongha.

Alright.

It is natural for Big Man and Crazy Horse to search for the last will.

The last will of the former king.

Yes. Let's imagine we are still here.

Yes. Let's just say that

we gather the strength to unite to find it.

But, would it change the world at all?

Breaking down the slavery system and identity of bastard

and abolish the political faction?

Is it like the magic club for the goblins?

Boom, here is the new world.

If the world could be changed like this,

it would have changed a long time ago.

It is something I have to devote myself and left out with nothing

and why should I do it?

Yongha.

So you will just watch us from the audience seat?

You are afraid of getting hurt from failure.

What will I have when I had my dream

and failed for everything?

Pride on yourself that at least you

were not afraid of fear to run away from it all.

Don't you need that?

So, you will start

this losing battle

at all costs?

Oh, such idiots.

I wanted to hear such an answer.

I also wanted to hear such an answer.

Your Majesty.

Leave it, Dr. Jeong.

What is there to do without listen to such.

There are men who will uphold the secret mission of Your Majesty.

Kim Seungheon

That friend ...

He said to open up the new world to his talented son.

He wanted to give the opportunity to spread out his wings.

So we said to find "Geumdeungjisa" no matter what.

Kim Yunsik. That is the

talented son for him.

Do you think

they will be able to crack the secret code?

It is something that I have yet to solve.

It is the meaning of his father

and the son must know how to understand it.

We must have faith in them.

So, the letter of resignation, which turned out to be a last will,

is a coded instruction that will help us carry out our mission, right?

As if bound together by string,

the king and I bare our souls under the moonlight.

Books and scriptures have produced talented individuals

and reformed our customs.

Where learning leads

and where a nation begins

is where my lost heart lies.

Wait a minute.

This is amazing.

Did you crack the code?

No. I have no idea what it means.

It sure makes for the best secret instruction ever.

Yongha.

One night, ten years ago,

the king ordered Dr. Kim Seungheon to bring him his grandfather's will,

and Dr. Kim replied that even if he did not return,

his spirit would always be by his majesty's side.

Where my lost soul lies.

This...

It seems to suggest that the last will of the former king

was put away somewhere.

And perhaps a clue about

the former king's will

also lies in this first line.

Souls bound together by a string...

- Paja! - Paja!

I remember how my father used to enjoy making riddles using paja.

- So... - Paja?

We have Lee Seonjun here, who got the highest score

on the Tangerine Exam by solving a paja question.

Using paja, we get the following radicals,

"King, two" and "human" and "moon" "loss" and "string"

"King, two" and "human"

Moon, "loss" and "string"

Geumdeung?

Geumdeung refers to a box that is shut tight with a metal wire.

It's a story from the Zhou Dynasty in the "Book of History."

Geumdeung is a story about one's loyalty

to the king.

Geumdeungjisa?

What the Red Writer has been talking about?

Did you know about all this?

The Red Writer is Mun Jaesin, the supreme investigator's son?

This is Mun Jaesin's.

We found it at the scene.

You have a hunch as well as material evidence,

but no clear-cut proof, right?

You can send soldiers to Sungkyunkwan

and have him arrested.

That's too extreme.

Is it not feasible?

There's no need to rush.

We don't need to make it known that we're after the Red Writer.

The king will only become more guarded.

I plan to corner the king so he can no longer protect the Red Writer.

I want the king himself

to give the order

to kill the Red Writer.

Swinging a bar to take down the unripened apple

makes you look silly.

The apple will fall when it is ripe.

You must be getting old.

You've gotten quite finicky.

Do you have a plan?

Would you let me use some of your men?

I will have them wait here

and get Mun Jaesin before he returns to Sungkyunkwan.

Just because of the Red Writer,

we can't live in suffering all the time, can we?

If we take him to the Prosecutor,

father will not say any more.

Do you know where "Geumdeungjisa" is?

Tell me, Jaesin.

Where learning leads and where a nation begins?

Where could that be?

Does "Geumdeungjisa" even exist?

What I know is... On that night, my brother who upheld the royal decree

was in upbeat mood to carry "Geumdeungjisa"

and he never came back

thereafter.

If so, you did not know that

"Geumdeungjisa" had not disappeared at all?

Jaesin... On the Red Writer

to the people who want to firmly believe that all things are over,

it is wanted to say that there are those who clearly remember it

and wanted to say to the king

that he should not sit on his kingship

and keep his silence.

Then where is "Geumdeungjisa" now?

I'll start looking for it now.

As you said...

if we go back ten years and find the people the two men ran into

and retrace their steps,

we should be able to figure out where "Geumdeungjisa" is.

In the meantime,

you guys deal with the coded instruction.

I hate things that require too much thinking.

How about me?

Was that a rhetorical question?

Hey. This should be fun.

It's like a competition. Who will find the first lead?

Good luck.

I'd like to know what our plan is.

Are you sure you really know nothing about "Geumdeungjisa"?

It's a letter by the former king

expressing his longing for his dead son, his majesty's father.

What?

There are those who were terrified of "Geumdeungjisa" coming to light.

They are the ones who destroyed it and killed my brother.

They are Noron.

Why didn't you mention this earlier?

Tell me.

Fancy seeing you here.

The Red Writer struck the Gwangtong Bridge last night.

You should've let me know sooner.

I never would've missed such a spectacle.

Then enjoy this spectacle.

You can tell us everything in prison.

If this is all you're basing the arrest on,

I'm afraid you most closely resemble the composite.

I wonder if you'll still want to to be funny once you see this.

The Red Writer left this behind on the Gwangtong Bridge.

If we need a witness to testify that this bracelet is Mun Jaesin's,

we can get anyone from Sungkyunkwan.

Is this what you were looking for?

Something like this?

Oh, right.

We have a class with Dr. Yu we have to rush off to.

You should hurry, too.

Hold on.

You don't need this, right?

Big Man wanted one, too.

Share what you don't need

if you want to go to heaven.

You do have a long way to go, though.

See? I'm Gu Yongha.

I'm going to find it.

And as we are looking for "Geumdeungjisa"

we are bound to find my brother's murderers.

I will show them

what they real ought to fear.

So what should I do?

On that night 10 years ago,

you have to find the last trace of Dr. Kim Seungheon and my brother.

Who they met,

where and how did they come into the city?

10 years ago?

It was the matter that occurred in 1901, how?

It is 10 years ago, not 10 days ago. How can we?

Oh, don't cry out loud.

Have you forgotten?

You are Gu Yongha.

So that

you want to find out.

The background to remove "Geumdeungjisa", isn't it?

Or is it because of Lee Seonjun? Or

Kim Yunsik?

Where learning leads

and where a nation begins.

Do you think I'll be able to figure out where this place is?

I've never done anything so grandiose as this.

I'm not interested in politics or governance.

I'm not that smart, either.

And I have no idea what my father's vision

may have been. And...

I'll be...

here.

When things get tough and overwhelming...

I'll be by your side.

When you regret having gotten yourself into something this dangerous...

I'll be

by your side.

When you get fed up and want to quit...

when you feel like you're not good enough

and get frustrated...

and even if...

come out

empty-handed...

and fail the mission...

I will

always be by your side,

Kim Yunhui.

His majesty has a special request for you.

He no longer wants you to do anything as the Red Writer,

as they could use you as an excuse to jeopardize his majesty's plans.

You knew?

Although your father is the supreme investigator,

he can't help you if the war minister catches you.

I know, sir.

My father has neither the power

nor the will.

Your brother was also a great writer.

It was nice to see

a piece of him in the Red Writer's leaflets.

Have you been consciously working on writing like your brother?

Without love for the people and concern for the nation,

a verse is not verse.

Without anger toward the times and the world,

a verse is not a verse.

Without the will to promote good and fight evil,

a verse is not a verse.

- That... - it's from my favorite book,

a book of poetry

by Jeong Yakyong, an alumnus of Sungkyunkwan.

Be that as it may, if you have too many absences,

you will fail my class this semester.

Is it because you're used to Sundol doing everything for you?

This is so easy.

Are you okay?

I'm so sorry.

It's a piece of junk!

It's from Qing China, you see.

Something must be terribly wrong.

It must have overheated.

It's a relief that the lift is indeed broken.

Given your powerful arms,

I thought you might have stopped the lift intentionally.

What do you mean?

Don't you remember?

At the library.

Do I have to spell it out for you?

I don't believe this.

You can rest assured it will never happen again.

What I meant was...

A scholar shouldn't be so emotional.

I told you not to worry. It won't happen again.

I've been meaning to tell you...

A scholar should be more composed.

Otherwise, how will you ever govern this nation?

Like I said, it won't ever happen again.

Don't you believe me?

You have my word.

So believe me.

The "Geumdeung" story in the "Book of History"...

They say if you laugh once

you grow a year younger,

but you frown once, you get wrinkles.

I was just kidding.

Please forgive me.

If you stop halfway,

it's better never to have started at all.

It's from the "Analects."

It is not becoming of a scholar to start something

only to leave it unfinished.

If you know your enemy and yourself, you will never lose a battle.

Do you really not know how I feel about you?

Hey, Lee Seonjun.

I was looking at that.

I am older than you.

What the hell?

Is it because I'm a Soron?

- Every time... - I'm sorry.

I have indexed this particular book.

If it's okay with you, you could read this first.

Well...

Come on.

He's imploring you with the utmost respect.

Be nice.

Lee Seonjun's a new man.

I'll let it go this time.

Mind your manners from now on.

Thank you.

Did you see that? Lee Seonjun apologized to me.

You saw it, right?

Yes. Yes.

The last note is not something I will utter out loud.

You should read it on your own.

I love you.

- Let's drink. - Let's drink.

Delicious.

Young fellow.

You should have a glass, too.

You're paying for all this. Have one drink, at least.

You're doing so much for the country. It's my small token of appreciation.

Go ahead and enjoy it.

Let us enjoy ourselves, then.

December 1, 1781.

December 1...

Envoys from Qing China were visiting.

So there must have been large-scale welcoming events.

And security must have been tight.

If bandits had appeared, it would've been in the morning paper.

A curfew would have been in effect.

That night, Dr. Kim Seungheon and Mun Yeongsin had to transport

Geumdeungjisa from Dogap Temple on Mount Wolchul to the palace.

The only escorts they could have had were Hanseongbu officials.

Among the officials who were on night shift that day,

there were five whose work location was not recorded.

Money is always involved in dirty errands.

Who was it?

Did anyone suddenly move to the provinces or disappear?

Did anyone suddenly come into a huge fortune?

Why do you ask?

Who are you?

Undercover inspection.

I can see how hard you're working for the country.

How about you work just a little bit harder?

Who was it?

No one's willing to talk?

Who suddenly struck gold?

Rats!

Wait. Something's not right.

Come on, guys.

Why do I keep losing?

Hold on. Come on now.

They say he has lost anywhere between 10 and 20 houses.

This time around, he may have to sell his wife and daughter.

They say you can't stop gambling unless you have your hands cut off.

You can't escape your destiny.

If you know how, share the secret, my lovely young man.

I heard he was in a similar predicament

ten years ago,

but someone saved him from certain death.

Who?

Certain death?

I think that's what's coming to you.

Scoundrel

I'm not moving, give me card!

Shame on you!

You're a Sungkyunkwan student!

I'm not doing it, father. No way.

No way, my foot!

Do you want your children to also live as incomplete nobility?

One of her ancestors was a high-ranking official.

She's from an honorable family.

It's high time that you...

If a family that gives away their daughter for money is honorable,

any family in Joseon can become "honorable."

I heard

you're hanging out with the prime minister's son.

You know the ways of the world.

You used to drive me crazy

hanging out with Crazy Horse,

who's a Soron

and without a future.

That's not to say you should part ways with that Soron.

The Noron rule the world right now,

but who knows?

You can never say never, and the Soron may come out on top.

I have a Namin by my side too, just in case.

I guess no one briefed you on that.

Stop sticking your nose into the Hanseongbu.

Stay in the background.

What the other kids may get a slap on the wrist for,

you might be sent to the gallows.

But why did you want us

to check up on Yeorim's house all of a sudden?

If I want heaven to help me, I need to do my part, too.

The more I think about it,

this whole thing is not my cup of tea.

It's too serious and noble.

But I have my faith in you,

so you have to find it, okay?

I'd like to see the new world

his majesty has in store for us.

Are you drunk? What's the matter?

Let's kick some behinds.

If you get to the second round, you become twice-blessed,

and if you get to the third round, you become thrice-blessed.

All right!

Right. Yun Hyeonggu, the Hanseongbu inspector.

I heard he paid off an enormous debt right after the incident ten years ago.

If we find out where he got the money,

we'll know whether or not it had anything to do with the incident.

There should be relevant records at the Supreme Investigators' Bureau.

What is the meaning of this?

This is the office of a government official.

You may be my son, but...

Father.

What's that doing here?

Answer me.

Why is my brother's case file,

along with daily inspection records

on the prime minister and the minister of war,

in your personal safe?

- Why? - Jaesin.

Did you think I had forgiven those

who had taken your brother from me?

So

the prime minister and the war minister...

They were involved?

Leave everything to me

from now on,

and stay out of this.

I have been alive, but not living.

All these years,

I've been biding my time

to seek the perfect moment for revenge.

Don't

take it away from me.

What would your dead brother think?

Do you have any right?

Anyone else can criticize me.

But not you, father. You don't have the right to.

When will you stop playing

the Noron's puppet?

The "Geumdeung" story is said to be in the "Book of History"

and yet we can't find it

in any of the books here.

Look carefully.

Maybe it's in one of these?

I thought I saw it in there.

Are you sure you saw it?

You got something on you.

Maybe not.

Is this better?

Now, please focus on the books.

You focus on the books.

I think we should go to the bookstore tomorrow.

Mr. Hwang might have some books

that our library doesn't carry.

We have such along way to go,

but we haven't even figured out the first lead.

Are you listening to me?

Did you find something there?

No.

But you're right. We should go to the bookstore.

The story is nowhere to be found in any of the books in our library.

About your son and my daughter's marriage...

I think it's time the adults get things rolling.

The kids are still too young to know

that marriage is not about

petty emotions.

I've come to pour you a drink, sir.

How dare you show yourself here?

Who are you?

On December 1, 1781,

I came to your assistance, sir. I'm Yun Hyeonggu from Hanseongbu.

You insolent fiend!

Enough.

Didn't you say you have come to pour me a drink?

I've come here

under the cover of night to save your life, sir.

Who do you think you are?

People are asking around about my whereabouts

that night when I defied the curfew

and brought Dr. Kim Seungheon and Mun Yeongsin

to you, good sirs.

Is that true?

Moreover,

they're also asking about the source of the title to the land.

I don't want to cause any problems for you,

so I thought I'd go into hiding in the deep of the mountains

and stay out of sight.

And?

I would need a small hut

and a plot of land to till, wouldn't I?

If the rabbit was caught a long time ago,

but the hound comes barking noisily now,

what do you suppose the owner will do?

All I know is that the hound,

in an instinct to survive,

will bite the owner

before he is tossed into a vat of boiling water.

If I were the owner,

I would try to coax the barking hound.

We can do away with Yun Hyeonggu tonight

- if we so wish. - Minister.

The king's people are after him.

Do you want to make it easier for the king to get to us?

How pathetic...

The "Geumdeung" story...

We couldn't find it in any of the books in the library.

It seems as though someone deliberately got rid of it.

The verses in the "Geumdeung" story are used to grieve an unjust death.

Am I right?

You're Sungkyunkwan's top student.

Why ask me

for help?

What the former king may consider an unjust death

and what his majesty is seeking...

Does "Geumdeungjisa" have

to do with the death of his majesty's father?

Do you know something?

I told you I hate having to think too much.

Let us all just focus on each of our roles.

I'll do mine, and you do yours.

Crazy Horse?

Where were you last night?

Is everything going well?

We're planning to go to the bookstore today

to see if we can find any leads to crack the secret code.

Where learning leads and where a nation begins...

Do you know where that may be?

Confucius said,

Scholarly pursuits come after

one has fulfilled his human duties.

So?

On a beautiful autumn day such as today,

don't you think it's our duty to go out and enjoy it?

So?

We must uphold Confucius' teaching

and exercise the discretion to skip the "Analects" class.

How about we uphold the age-old tradition

of having our friends answer on our behalf during roll call?

Well, well, well.

Pathetic minds must think alike.

There's always a good reason why some families never make it big.

If you're not smart enough, at least go to all the classes

for even a sliver of chance of passing the High Exam.

Just look at Lee Seonjun.

He's neither looking to his father

to find him a government post

nor does his skip any classes.

- Not a single one. - He's skipping one right now.

Fortune pouches! Brooches!

It was Baek Dongsu

who handed the money to Yun?

Who's Baek?

You're still too green.

Who uses real names for such transactions?

Will you wait for me inside?

I have an errand to run.

How is Lee Seonjun?

Well...

I know I'm pathetic.

Although I'm his fiancee, I have to get news about him from others.

You're

his best friend.

Will you help me?

Help me get him to open his heart to me.

Marriage is the coming together of two families.

If you still have any anger on me,

help me for the sake of the man of our house.

This is a marriage between two families.

Changes in our feelings

cannot break this marriage.

Even if he does not open his heart to me,

this marriage will come to pass in due course.

So please help me not only for my sake, but also for that of Lee Seonjun.

- Look, I... - I know.

I know I'm not good enough.

I know I'm immature.

That's what everyone says.

But I don't want anyone to doubt my love for Lee Seonjun,

because it's genuine.

Sir...

Not in a thousand years would I have thought

I'd run into you here.

Could you spare me a few minutes?

I must speak with you.

I...

Will wait for you outside.

I'm sorry.

I'll be forever penitent of having broken my promise to you.

But

my feelings aren't going to change.

There's someone else I have given my heart to.

So please don't waste your time on someone worthless like me.

I'm sorry.

Let's go.

What just happened, miss?

Why did you

offer to wait outside?

I thought you two needed to talk.

At the end of the day, you will marry her.

If you're worried about me,

don't be.

I...

I've gotten enough already.

And...

I've never thought about our future.

That's

- a luxury I can't afford. - Start thinking about it.

Think about it very seriously.

That's what I've been doing day and night.

You and I are too different.

Thanks to you,

I've been able to do so many things I never thought I could.

But

you yourself refuse to take even one step out

of where you think you belong.

I'm a luxury you can't afford?

Where does that leave me?

What am I to do?

I'm terrified.

I like you so much.

Every day is filled with joy.

And

I'm not used to this.

We should go in.

Jaesin and Yongha must be waiting for us.

I got it.

It's a copy of the deed given to Yun ten years ago.

If we can find out who this is,

we'll know who bought out Yu.

We're almost there.

Let's call it quits.

What?

Our mission

is to find "Geumdeungjisa" not who was responsible

for what happened that night.

So you know.

Who was it?

I almost forgot.

You have a knack for distracting me

and making me forget things.

Well...

What did I do this time?

Did you say it will be over once we leave Sungkyunkwan?

Nothing will be over.

I...

Will start anew every day.

What?

Keep your voice down.

The prime minister

was behind everything?

Lee Seonjun's father?

What did you say, Yongha?

Who was behind everything?

Stop right there!

Are you turning your back on your own father?

It's cowardly to keep your silence in the face of the truth.

Jaesin.

Why are you so startled, Yeorim?

Were you being naughty?

Do you think it's true?

This is great.

Good luck, everyone.

Lady Luck is never far away.

People become cowardly

because they have someone they want to protect.

Do you think he will be able to forgive you?

What did you just say?