Original subtitles

Why did you bring the girl?

Bring them over here.

-Yes, General. -Yes, General.

Are you aware of the reason for your arrest?

I will ask the Grand Councillor

for a clear explanation when I see him.

I have been put in a very awkward position.

I am taking you to Yeongyeong at the behest of the Grand Councillor,

but it would bring us trouble if we let you meet the Grand Councillor.

So...

Why are you doing this to me?

Must I die without knowing the reason?

I shall...

end your life here and now.

Spare my life.

I will give you 50,000 yang of gold.

Is that the most you are willing to offer...

to save yourself?

How about 100,000?

I can speak to my master

and give you as much as you want.

As much as I want?

But if you kill me,

you will incur a debt you can never repay.

What the...

-Bring her over here. -Yes, General.

Stop.

She is my prisoner.

There are to be no witnesses to this incident.

I told you to bring the girl.

Yes, General.

Do not take another step, you scum.

My master told you to stop.

If we keep her alive, she will pose a threat to us.

I am the one to decide whether she lives or dies.

It is not up to you.

Have it your way.

But keep in mind

that you should take responsibility for any trouble she may bring us.

Your Imperial Majesty.

What brings you here?

I am here to take your seal.

Now leave.

You cannot take the Prince to the Cold Palace.

What do you mean?

You are being disciplined for your wrongdoing.

Take the Prince.

Let me take His Imperial Highness.

Step back.

No one will take my son!

-Your Imperial Majesty. -If you wish to take him away from me,

you will have to kill me first.

What are you waiting for?

Take the Prince.

I beg your pardon, Your Imperial Majesty.

Maha!

Maha!

-Maha! -Your Imperial Majesty.

Go and get my father. Now!

Father, these malicious people are taking my son away from me!

My son...

Behave yourself!

Maintain your dignity.

Have you lost your senses?

Is this how you pay me back

for sending you to Ganye temple?

Do not be so deluded, Your Imperial Majesty.

I am only trying to protect the Prince from his foolish mother.

The Prince is the future of the Great Yuan.

How can I entrust him with someone who tried to poison Imperial Concubines?

You brought it on yourself.

If you harm one hair on his head,

you will not be able to avoid the consequences.

I am not as foolish as you are.

Use your time in the Cold Palace to repent your sins

and become a better person.

Maha.

Maha!

Maha.

Maha.

Maha.

-Maha. -Your Imperial Majesty.

Maha.

-My son. -Your Imperial Majesty.

-My boy, Maha. -Your Imperial Majesty.

You will get to see your son again,

but I will never be able to see mine ever again.

I can never see him

or hold him no matter how much I want to.

Can you even imagine how painful it is?

Your pain...

is nothing compared to mine.

I swear I did not do it.

I know.

Do you know

how infuriated I am by this unfair punishment?

-I do. -Then...

please find out who did this.

They are bringing Heuk Su from Yoyang.

-Once he gets here-- -Concubine Ki.

She is behind all this.

Do you have proof?

No. That is what drives me crazy.

But I can tell from the way she looks at me.

I can tell she is laughing at me

and mocking me.

Do not forget

how miserable I have become because of her.

When I return,

I will make sure to kill Concubine Ki...

and the Empress Dowager...

with my own hands.

Dang Gise, look.

You stay here.

-Yes, General. -Yes, General.

Is there something you want to say to me?

Can we have a word in private?

Leave us.

I never imagined that the poisoned dates

would be found in the Empress's palace.

I have to admit it.

You won.

We lost.

How are you sure it was my doing?

No one had successfully pulled off such a thing against us

until you came along.

I have no clue what you are talking about.

I cannot listen to your nonsense anymore.

Do you know why...

Concubine Park died?

That lowly one dared to bear an imperial heir.

So I had to kill her.

That lowly wench should have known her place.

You are no different from her.

How could a mere tribute woman try to bring the Empress down?

You speak of vengeance?

Do you think you stand a chance against us?

Do not speak too soon.

I have not even gotten started yet.

Do you think sending her away to the Cold Palace was my revenge?

As I held the bodies of my friends in my arms and cried...

you will soon hold those...

of your father and sister...

and cry until your eyes bleed.

Only then can I say

I have had my revenge.

Your Imperial Majesty.

This is where you will be staying.

Your Imperial Majesty.

Be careful, Your Imperial Majesty.

It is worse...

than they say.

You are not allowed to start the fire to heat up the place

or wear warm clothes. We cannot even have decent food

during our time here, Your Imperial Majesty.

I will bear with it.

Soon, my father...

will get me out of here.

We can finally breathe easy with the Empress gone.

We can finally sleep without worry at night.

Think of those tonics we had to drink.

They were awful.

Her Highness has arrived.

The recent incident has left the Inner Court in turmoil.

Now we will return...

to normalcy and uphold discipline.

Those above in rank should care for those below.

Those below in rank should respect those above.

Harmony shall be restored.

Do you all understand?

-Yes, Your Highness. -Yes, Your Highness.

"Presiding at court, asking the Way"

"Presiding at court...

asking...

the Way."

"Peace and justice achieved."

"Peace..."

Her Highness is on her way here.

You should clear your desk.

You do not need to keep this from her any longer.

Escort Her Highness in.

Your Highness.

Is His Imperial Majesty writing?

Yes, Your Highness.

He wrote

these letters himself.

Then...

the reason you sent for her every night...

It was to learn how to read and write.

Your Imperial Majesty, can you speak now?

I can, Your Highness.

Thank you.

Thank you, Your Imperial Majesty.

It is all thanks to Concubine Ki.

You are a blessing

to the Imperial House.

I believe we should keep the fact that His Imperial Majesty can speak again

secret from others for a while.

-Why do you say so? -Grand Councillor is trying to

make me abdicate my throne.

He is?

Now the Empress is in the Cold Palace,

they will show their true colors.

Concubine Ki?

Are you saying Concubine Ki plotted the incident?

She survived the slaughter that killed Concubine Park.

She is holding a grudge against us.

Was she not the one Baekan recommended?

That is why you should not trust Baekan.

He will betray us sooner or later.

Baekan...

will betray us?

Grand Councillor.

General Taltal is here to see you.

-Send him in. -Yes, Grand Councillor.

You are back.

Where is Heuk Su?

He bit his tongue and killed himself on the way.

He killed himself?

My apologies. I accept full responsibility.

I see. You are dismissed.

Father, we have to do something about Baekan.

We will announce the abdication soon.

Once we announce it,

we will know if he is a traitor or a loyal servant.

What did he say?

We will have to be careful from now on.

Is he suspecting us?

The way he looked at me was different from before.

That old geezer.

I knew we would not be able to fool him forever.

Where is Wang Yu?

Your Majesty, we are finally here.

Why will you not see Seung-nyang?

It is all my fault.

If I go and see her,

she might go through more pain because of me.

-I do not want that. -Is she...

the only one you worry about? What about you?

Your Majesty has suffered...

at least as much as she has.

Eunuch Bang has gone to the Imperial Palace.

Without my permission?

My apologies.

We cannot stand to see Your Majesty suffer any longer.

Your Ladyship.

Eunuch Bang is here to see you.

If you do not want to see him, I can send him away.

You may come in.

His Majesty...

would like to meet you.

Meet me?

Where does wish to see me?

Since Your Ladyship cannot leave the Palace,

-somewhere away from prying eyes-- -How dare you suggest something like that?

I am...

an imperial concubine.

How could you suggest I see a strange man in secret?

Pardon?

A strange man?

Tell him this.

If he wishes to see me,

he should request an audience with His Imperial Majesty.

That is the only way...

he will see me again.

Yes, I will relay your message.

Eunuch Bang.

Do not take it to heart.

Please thank Her Ladyship...

for me.

Pardon?

It is always harder to be the one who leaves

than to be the one left behind.

This will help...

His Majesty...

take a load off his mind.

I will get going.

Did she call me a strange man?

Yes, Your Majesty.

She said that you should request an audience with the Emperor to see her.

She was quite cold and adamant.

See?

She has changed after she became a concubine.

She is not the old Seung-nyang.

It is time you got over her.

You do not understand her.

-Your Majesty. -Your Majesty.

Request an audience...

with the Emperor.

What? Wang Yu is back?

He wishes to pay his respects.

Why are you looking at me?

Are you afraid to see him?

Tell him his request has been granted.

Yes...

Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.

You belong to me.

Why would I be afraid to see him?

I shall be there...

when you see him.

Why is that?

No one can know you can speak again.

Have you forgotten?

Your Imperial Majesty, I hope you have been well.

His Imperial Majesty...

cannot speak.

I heard it from His Imperial Majesty's eunuch.

May I ask you a favor, Your Imperial Majesty?

May I have a word...

with Wang Yu alone?

I will not if you refuse.

But...

I ask for your trust.

Please allow me to talk to him.

I appreciate it,

Your Imperial Majesty.

You seem like you are doing well.

Thank you,

Wang Yu.

Do you...

resent me?

There is no room for resentment in my heart.

In my heart,

Seung-nyang died long ago.

Forget me.

I do not want...

to be remembered by you.

Nor would I want...

to be reminded of you.

What is past is past.

You no longer hold a special place in my heart.

I wish...

we never meet again.

I am sorry.

I am so sorry.

Do not be.

I was the one who left you.

There is no one in the world

who can blame you.

Not...

even me.

Do not feel sorry for me.

Do not cry...

and hold to your path.

As will I.

I will not look back

or suffer.

I will not regret the past

and hold to my path.

Forget me...

and find happiness.

I know it is selfish of me to say that,

but please...

It is...

my last shameless request.

I am sorry,

Your Majesty.

Your Majesty...

Grand Councillor Yeoncheol, what brings you here?

Tell His Imperial Majesty that the Grand Councillor is here.

Your Imperial Majesty, Grand Councillor...

Your Imperial Majesty.

Are you drinking already?

No doubt you are distraught

at my daughter's exile.

There is somewhere we need to go.

Come along.

Did you not hear me?

-Escort him. -Yes, Father.

Where are you taking His Imperial Majesty?

Stand aside!

You will have to kill us first if you wish to take His Imperial Majesty.

You can come along.

Your Imperial Majesty.

Your Imperial Majesty.

Today, I renounce...

all my authority as the Emperor.

I name Prince Maha as the heir apparent.

The Empress will rule as a regent

until he comes of age.

It is an imperial message on my abdication.

Place your seal.

You are mute but not deaf.

Place your seal now.

We spoke of your abdication before.

Did you tell anyone about it?

I doubt you did as you cannot speak

or write.

Your Imperial Majesty.

The provincial governors are out of control these days.

They may request an audience with you,

but you should just ignore them.

Do you understand?

-Your Imperial Majesty. -Your Imperial Majesty.

Grand Councillor...

wrote an imperial message on my abdication.

And?

Did you place your seal on it?

Did you?

Yes.

Your Highness.

Abdication?

How could they even dream of making him abdicate his throne?

Only the provincial governors can stop it now.

Your Highness should call for a meeting.

That would put His Imperial Majesty in trouble.

What then?

Are you saying we should just let Yeoncheol have his way?

First, we should sound out the governors.

How can we do that?

Governor Baekan...

can help us.

If His Imperial Majesty refuses to abdicate the throne

and all the governors support him,

we can stop the abdication.

But the governors' interests and Yeoncheol's are intertwined.

We are dealing with power.

It is impossible to win all of them to our side.

Impossible or not, it must be done.

I will help His Imperial Majesty.

Please arrange a meeting with the governors.

If Yeoncheol finds out,

all of us can be put in danger, including Your Ladyship and His Imperial Majesty.

It cannot be helped. We have no other choice.

Even if I manage to gather the governors,

how will you convince them?

Do you know what this is?

This is proof that the Emperor has agreed to abdicate his throne.

Is that an imperial message on his abdication?

Yes. That is correct.

After we announce it at the Kurultai...

KURULTAI: COUNCIL OF NOMADS

...I will make my grandson ascend to the throne.

To my knowledge,

that requires a unanimous vote from the governors.

That is not a problem.

I have the means to keep them in line.

Did you hear about Seung-nyang?

I thought she was dead. But she became an imperial concubine.

I saw her.

And?

Did she seem happy to be reunited with her master?

She has changed a lot.

The look in her eyes, the way she talks, and her thoughts...

She is not the Seung-nyang I used to know.

I guess it is true that women get intoxicated by power

more easily than men do.

She was once a tribute woman, but she is now an imperial concubine.

It is no surprise that she has become so arrogant.

You must be disappointed.

But you are better off without that wench.

Who would have thought

I would get to live such a comfortable life?

Where is Wang Yu?

Why do you ask?

Have you finally decided to tell us about the ledger?

If not, forget it.

His Majesty already has a lot on his mind without you adding to his troubles.

Did something happen?

Well, the thing is...

Never mind.

I want to see him.

What?

Why did you ask for me?

I will crack the codes on the ledger.

But I will only do it on two conditions.

-Do you want me to release you? -No.

I want you to kill me.

Even if you release me,

the Eagle House will come after me.

With Heuk Su dead,

they will sell me into slavery.

Also, I want you to bury my bones

in the desert of my people.

You do not need to crack the codes.

I will not kill you.

And I will never let them sell you into slavery.

Are you saying

you are going to protect me?

I tried to kill you.

Why?

Why are you doing this?

Is anyone out there?

Yes, Your Majesty.

Give her something to eat.

Kill me.

I would rather die!

The code uses...

the numbering system of the Roman Empire.

Copy out the 1,000 characters here.

Make 100 rows...

of 10 characters.

Each combination of two numbers...

indicates a letter...

at a point where the horizontal and vertical lines meet.

Write down the letters

and you will know what this document is about.

How long will it take you to decrypt the document?

It will take a few days.

Do it.

Your Imperial Majesty, have some food.

You must be hungry. Please have this.

Your Imperial Majesty.

I am sick of dumplings.

How am I supposed to live on such food?

You still have to eat it to survive.

To fend off the cold...

No. I said no.

Your Imperial Majesty.

It is so cold.

Your Imperial Majesty.

It is so cold.

Your Imperial Majesty.

No matter how cold and hungry you are, you have to stay strong.

Once you let things get to you, you will lose.

I can stand being cold and hungry.

But my baby...

I cannot stand being away from my son.

Your Imperial Majesty.

He is in fact...

What are you saying?

Of course, you miss him.

You have to pull yourself together until you see him again.

What is my father doing?

Why have I not heard from him?

He is busy with the abdication.

Who cares about the abdication?

At this rate, I might die here!

Baekan.

He will definitely oppose the abdication. You can be assured that he is on our side.

Oh Gwang.

Seol Dogan.

Bu Sagwi.

Jeok Gong.

They are fathers of the concubines.

For their daughters,

they will oppose the abdication.

Our problem is convincing the other governors.

We have something we can use.

According to Master Taltal,

Oh Gwang and the governors of Gamsuk and Hanam are like brothers.

Bu Sagwi is close to the governors of Gangjeol and Gangseo.

Seol Dogan and the governors of Seomseo and Hogwang are sworn friends.

That means as long as we have the fathers of the concubines on our side...

We will have all the ten governors we need on our side.

We cannot delay.

You should secretly send for them immediately.

Rather than that, how about you host a banquet for the concubines tonight

and invite the fathers over?

Yeoncheol still does not know that I can speak again.

If you host the banquet,

he will less likely to be suspicious of what we are planning.

Tell Governor Baekan to have them here at the hour of the Dog.

THE HOUR OF THE DOG: 7 P.M.

Yes, Your Highness.

Invite the governors over to our house tonight.

The Empress Dowager is hosting a dinner tonight.

That is why I want to invite them over.

Since it is for the concubines, the Emperor will be there as well.

Him seeing the governors does us no good.

The governors will not break

their previous engagement with the Empress Dowager.

Do you think they would choose the Empress Dowager over me?

The invitation is not from Her Highness but from His Imperial Majesty?

There is something he would like to discuss with us.

Tell us what this is about.

The Grand Councillor is pushing for His Imperial Majesty's abdication.

-What? -Remember...

this cannot leave the room.

I should think not.

But the Grand Councillor also invited us over for dinner tonight.

Will it be all right?

Who cares about dinner?

Since our daughters became concubines,

we have not seen His Imperial Majesty more than glimpses.

If His Imperial Majesty abdicates his throne,

what will happen to our daughters?

We cannot sit back.

Can you bring the other governors?

-It will be no problem. -Do not forget.

We will meet at the Emperor's palace at the hour of the Dog.

We understand.

How come no one is here yet?

Did you send the wrong time?

Give them some time.

Do you know what you are going to say to the governors?

I have memorized every word.

Keep in mind...

that you are their Emperor.

Be strong and resolute.

But show warmth which Yeoncheol lacks.

Show them...

who the true ruler of the Yuan dynasty is.

Do not worry.

My sixth great-grandfather

is Genghis Khan.

Your Imperial Majesty.

It is time we get going.

His Imperial Majesty has arrived.

Your Imperial Majesty.

Explain yourselves.

Why do I not see a single governor here?

Answer me.

Where are they?

They are at the Grand Councillor's house.

We wish you long life and prosperity.

-We wish you long life and prosperity. -We wish you long life and prosperity.

Let us get to it without further ado.

Do you support the abdication of His Imperial Majesty...

and naming of the Prince Maha as the heir apparent?

Before that, we want the Grand Councillor to give us an assurance that he will keep

the promise he made to us.

Of course.

What are those?

Does anyone care to elaborate?

It says that If we support the abdication

and Prince Maha ascends the throne,

the Grand Councillor swears to wipe clean

all of the governors' debts to him.

Well, is it agreeable?

Indeed, Grand Councillor.

-Indeed, Grand Councillor. -Indeed, Grand Councillor.

The new Emperor will ensure stability.

All of you have indebted to me for a large sum,

but I will forget them in the interests of a peaceful reign.

Now, fill your glasses for a new world.

Are you disappointed?

It is all over now.

With no subjects on my side,

I am as good as abdicated.

We knew...

our opponents were strong.

Yet I continue to fight them. Do you know why?

It is because I believe in you.

Do not cry over a small setback.

Not while you still have one subject...

who believes in you.

Stay strong, Your Imperial Majesty.

Yeoncheol's resources are beyond imagination.

He definitely is working closely with the Eagle House.

-How else could he... -Your Majesty.

Yeon Bisu has finished decrypting.

Really?

It is not...

the Eagle House's ledger.

No?

Then what is it?

"Unnam Province, Lee Wongak,

Ju Haeryeong, Song Chio.

Hanam Province, Seo Jaeguk, Jang Wonsu."

Yeon Bisu does not know what it is either.

Your Majesty.

"Yeongbuk Province, Wang Sipan,

Ju Haeseok. Goryeo, Kim Ja-chi."

Wait.

Kim Ja-chi of Goryeo?

Hold on.

Kim Ja-chi?

Our trade minister, Kim Ja-chi,

conspired with the envoys from the Yuan dynasty.

He was defrauding Goryeo with the Eagle House.

-Then this... -It must be a list of people

who works for the Eagle House in each province.

It explains how the governors

came to owe Yeoncheol so much money.

We will use this

to stop the abdication.

Will you help the Emperor?

Helping him means

that you will be helping Seung-nyang...

What the...

-Send for Taltal. -Yes, Your Majesty.

Will His Imperial Majesty do well?

He will since he has been learning from an excellent teacher.

By the way, how did you get your hands on the document?

No one can know it came from me.

The informant wishes to stay anonymous.

The Grand Councillor has dethroned three emperors so far.

Now...

he wants to dethrone a fourth.

But this time,

he picked the wrong opponent.

Think about what you can do for me.

That is why I need your support.

Wait a little longer.

I will bring you good news soon.

Grand Councillor.

His Imperial Majesty is not here yet.

The abdication has already been confirmed.

Grand Councillor wanted to prepare for the unexpected.

He is not the only one who is preparing for the unexpected.

Concubine Ki wishes to see you.

A mere concubine dares to walk into the tiger's lair by herself?

How can you call yourself a tiger

when you are doing something even a sneaky cat would not do?

Subtitle translation by Min-jin Kim