Episode 5 is the fifth episode of Season 1 of Kingdom.
Synopsis[]
Prince Chang’s group comes across a village that oddly seems to be well-fed. While taking refuge at Lord Ahn Hyeon’s, Seo-bi notes something peculiar.
Plot[]
Having reunited with Yeong-sin and Seo-bi, Crown Prince Chang's group rests on the way to Sangju. Chang mourns for the deaths of the refugees at Jiyulheon while Mu-yeong tells him to be wary of Yeong-sin who is unclear about his past, suspecting him to be a Chakho soldier, an elite troop that hunts tigers. Seo-bi leaves to find medicinal herbs to treat Chang while Yeong-sin returns for his watch, informing them that many locals are fleeing due to fears of the rumors of the undead.
Seo-bi becomes startled by a presence and runs back to the group, but it turns out to be none other than Dongnae magistrate Cho Beom-pal who shares he was the only survivor from the ship after they unknowingly transported an infected corpse brought onboard by an aristocratic woman. Though Chang is completely disgusted by his cowardice, Yeong-sin worries that the disease may soon reach Sangju since the magistrate had only notified forts near Dongnae and the city will be unprepared. Worse, if the fortress at Mungyeong Saejae outside the city falls, the disease would have a clear path to the capital. The Prince insists they must leave immediately to warn the city. The ship, meanwhile, beaches somewhere upriver.
Outside Sangju, Lord Ahn Hyeon is in mourning at his mother's grave. Deok-seong, one of his followers, arrives to tell him that the signal fire in Dongnae has been lit. While a messenger has yet to arrive, rumors of a strange disease with the undead are spreading across Gyeongsang. Lord Ahn announces he will leave the mountains. In town, he learn that one of his followers found a strange abandoned ship while scouting, and his group goes to investigate. In spite of copious amounts of blood, there are no bodies, and the cargo has been removed from the hold.
The Crown Prince's party comes across a small village in the mountains, where the locals are enjoying a feast in spite of the famine. Though the headman tries to bluff, Beom-pal notices a woman with silk and soon finds the cargo looted from the ship. The villagers ask forgiveness from the Prince, saying that all the passengers were already dead when they found them. The Prince demands to know where they are buried in exchange for lessening their punishment for stealing, and a villager offers to lead them to the site. Meanwhile, Lord Ahn's troop follows wheel marks to find the cargo.
The villagers lead the Crown Princes' group to a clearing in a field of tall grass with the obvious intent to ambush them, but when Chang is more worried that the whole population of Gyeongsang Province might die, he is told the bodies are buried beneath their feet. As the sun sets, the buried corpses revive and easily annihilate the villagers, forcing Chang's group to fight them alone though overwhelmed. Lord Ahn and his followers arrive on time and quickly eliminate the threat. Lord Ahn and his followers greet the crown prince, and guide him and his party them back to Sangju. Chang recalls Lord Ahn as his mentor who saved him from being deposed as a child and for always advising him to fight against injustice.
At Lord Ahn's mansion, the prince shows him Physician Lee Seung-hui's journals. He explains how Cho Hak-ju ordered the physician to use the resurrection plant to revive the King after he had died, and how it started the current epidemic. He pleads for Lord Ahn's assistance to punish the Haewon Cho clan and rebuild Joseon but Lord Ahn instead suggests the prince get some rest, and not worry for that night.
In the courtyard, Seo-bi asks Mu-yeong about Lord Ahn, finding it strange that neither he nor his followers were frightened by the infected, and knew how to fight them effectively as if they had already known about them. The Crown Prince emerges, and Lord Ahn's servants escort him and his party to their quarters. The Crown Prince tells Mu-yeong that Lord Ahn would not give him a definite pledge of support. Mu-yeong questions if they can really trust Lord Ahn, since he didn't even try to help when Lord Cho suppressed the scholars, and wonders if he may be in league with him. However, the Prince dismisses the idea.
In Hanyang, Hak-ju experiments on a prisoner by feeding him flesh from an infected. He watches as the prisoner turns and feeds on his cellmate, and then as the cellmate in turn becomes a monster. He realizes that the epidemic cannot be controlled, and determines to contain it before it reaches the northern region.
Back in Sangju, Yeong-sin wakes up early and heads for the river. He passes a monument to Ahn Hyeon's miraculous victory over 30,000 Japanese soldiers with 500 men, which he spits on. He arrives at the ruined site of Sumang Village. In a flashback, it is revealed that the village was a leper colony, where the infected lived in miserable thatched huts. In the present, Yeong-sin heads up the road to the cemetery, where he is surprised to find incense burning at the graves.
At the local government office, Beom-pal inspects the recovered cargo from the ship. Deok-seong discusses the situation with the Governor of Sangju, telling him that while Lord Ahn had prevented a disaster by killing the infected they should heighten security. A military official unexpectedly arrives in town to inform Deok-seong that the Five Armies have left Hanyang and are headed south. Hearing this, Beom-pal asks Seo-bi to run away with him, as he is sure the Five Armies are coming to arrest the Crown Prince and will surely kill anyone associated with him. However, Seo-bi is disgusted that he would abandon the Prince, and refuses to leave.
In Hanyang, a number of poor pregnant widows have been gathered in a mansion, where they are given food and shelter. Among them is Mu-yeong's wife, who was sent there by her husband while he is away. They speculate about the identity of their mysterious benefactor, and wonder why they were given such a generous offer. At the Royal Palace, the Queen and Hak-ju announce royal edict that in light of the King's illness and the troubled situation in the country, the Queen will assume power as regent. As her first command, she has ordered the Five Armies to quarantine Gyeongsang; all roads leading out of the province will be sealed, and anyone who attempts to leave will be killed. The Governor of Sangju, who has gone to meet the army at the fortress of Mungyeong Saejae on the provincial border, is horrified when he realizes the army's intention. The royal troops quickly take command of the fort, and one of the Governor's aides is shot when he makes a run for the gate as it closes, trapping them in Gyeongsang.
Cast[]
- Ju Ji-hoon as Crown Prince Lee Chang
- Ryu Seung-ryong as Lord Cho Hak-ju
- Bae Doo-na as Seo-bi
- Kim Sang-ho as Mu-yeong
- Kim Sung-gyu as Yeong-sin
- Jeon Seok-ho as Cho Beom-pal
- Kim Hye-jun as Queen Cho
- Heo Joon-ho as Lord Ahn Hyeon
- Jin Seon-kyu as Deok-seong
- Jeong Gyu-su as Governor of Sangju
Translations[]
- The Monument to the Battle of Unpo Wetland reads:
- 雲浦沼澤之戰蹟碑
- 尙州沼澤告捷之地日軍倭寇帶領三萬大軍人
- 致釜山東萊城蔚山城慶州城淪陷繼而寧川城
- 十月二十日爲拯救陷於水深火熱之中的國家
- 以安賢大監爲首于尙州沼澤一帶展開戰鬪
- 以五百名軍士取得首次告捷
- 慾將此奇跡般之勝利告知後代千秋
- Monument to the Battle of Unpo Wetland
- The Sangju wetlands were the site of a victory over the Japanese bandits, who led 30,000 soldiers. Busan's Dongnae, Ulsan, Gyeongju, and Nyeongcheon fell to the enemy. On the 20th day of the 10th month, to save the nation from calamity, Lord Ahn Hyeon led a battle in the Sangju wetlands area and with 500 soldiers achieved the first victory. We desire that this miraculous victory shall be passed down to future generations for a thousand years.
- Note: Ahn Hyeon's name is written with a different character than on the note in the previous episode.
- Sumang Village is written as 壽望村.
Gallery[]
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External links[]
Episode 5 on the Internet Movie Database
