The Contest Begins
The Taekhyeon prepare to wage war against the kingdom. Hwa-Ryeong reaffirms her own position and declares that she will fight alongside the Taekhyeon if necessary.
The Prince’s footrace and archery contest gets underway in Seongnam. The Princes from different parts of the kingdom compete, using their skills learned during the Crown Prince’s training. Seongnam manages to outpace his competitors with his wind-based skills.
This comes from something entirely different. The Princes are forced to try and find Park Gyeong-U in four days, giving him the royal edict. The thing is, the other Princes don’t all play as fairly as others and there are boundless schemes attempting to thwart Hwa-Ryeong’s sons. The State Councilor is, of course, right at the heart of everything but so too is the Queen Dowager.
Prince Uiseong gets an upper-hand from Consort Hwang, who gives some intel to give over before he reaches the mountain. The Queen Dowager is also working with Prince Bogeom too, whom she’s partnered up with.
Hwa-Ryeong sets up a screen to keep them all distracted and in one place, so that she can take control.
She decides to do embroidery with them and prevents anyone from leaving until they’re done. Of course, this is a cunning plan to prevent them from interfering with the Taekhyeon and it works an absolute charm. That is, except for Consort Ko who’s not actually there.
Prince Gyeryong is determined to win the war against the other young princes. He has found a shortcut to arrive in Mount Gyeryong a few hours earlier than the others, and he is determined to use that time to get the intel he needs. Ko tells him not to disappoint, as the young man swallows his pride and decides to take the intel head-on.
Prince Hodong, the little prince, has already conceded defeat. The other serious contenders are riding for the Mountain, finding their own way there. ..
The Seongnam militia was able to hold their own against a band of bandits, thanks to the timely arrival of palace guards.
The King appoints Park Gyeong-U as the Minister of Taxation, but the State Councilor is not happy. He wants to stop Prince Uiseong from being crowned and wants to find a way to do this.
The King shows the arrow to Seongnam and tells him it almost killed him. He claims not to know anything about it, but it’s obvious he does. The King can’t investigate this thoroughly because in doing so, it would make it look like he’s interfering with the current contest. As a result, he reluctantly stops the investigation until after the contest.
The Gyeong-U, insisting he will not go back to the palace, examines the body of the bandit leader to see if there are clues as to who may have ordered the assassination attempt. With the physician at hand, Hwa-Ryeong finds evidence of a picture stuffed inside the bandit leader’s mouth. This picture is of Seongnam, confirming that this was a deliberate assassination attempt. There is also a message left on the body: “Kill at all costs.” ..
Hwa-Ryeong, the new Queen of Silla, immediately heads back to see the Consorts and demands the truth, determined to find out exactly who was plotting against her. Consort Hwang is incredibly suspicious with the way she’s acting and keeps a stiff upper-lip when she leaves the room. She also brushes past the other Consorts without a word too, leaving Hwa-Ryeong to stare daggers through them all. ..
Prince Bogeon and Seongnam are the two who come closest to uncovering the truth about Gyeong-U, even finding out that he’s not blind thanks to Seongnam’s cool head and quite literally jumping from a cliff and holding a branch to prove him wrong. The next day, while out on the shore, Cheong-Ha finds Seongnam and rushes up to her, throwing her arms around him. Hilariously, he barely remembers who she is.
After finding the co-leader of the bandits, Hwa-Ryeong manages to track them down and captures them. She learns that a woman gave them the composite. She had a frog hairpin which means she was working with the Queen Dowager.
In a room full of people, Hwa-Ryeong shows up with a sketch of a person she claims is amazing and a poisonous plant. She threatens to harm them if they don’t keep it safe. She’s clearly trying to make an impression, but her threats are empty.
The Episode Review
The episode begins with a bit of a mystery as to who killed the previous Under the Queen’s Umbrella writer, and it quickly becomes clear that there is much more at play than just the Princes. The Palace seems to be working hand in hand with some sort of organization or cabal, and it’s not clear what their endgame is.
There are a lot of political ties and scheming in this drama, and the acting is great all around. However, there are parts that don’t quite work, including the weird subplot involving Chang-Ha and the Minister of War. Still, I’m sure that will come into play later on! ..
The Queen Dowager and Hwa-Ryeong are likely to clash much more violently later on down the line. Who will make it out on top?
