Lee Yeom was a king of Joseon. He succeeded the prior king as an infant. He was alleged to be the son of the King and his second wife, and half-brother of Prince Lee Chang; however, he was actually the son of Chang's bodyguard, Mu-yeong.
History[]
During her pregnancy, the Queen had a miscarriage. To protect her power, she and her brother Cho Beom-il ordered a number of pregnant women brought to her palace, in the hope that one would give birth to a replacement baby. Mu-yeong left his wife with her shortly before he departed for Dongnae with the crown prince. She turned out to be the only woman to successfully have a son, whom the Queen immediately steals. Her father, Cho Hak-ju, discovers the plot when he has Seo-bi examine the Queen for symptoms of pregnancy. He is outraged at her plot, as the baby is a commoner who cannot cary on the royal line or that of the Haewon Cho clan. Lord Cho threatens to kill the baby and place a distant relative of the late king on the throne. However, the Queen poisons her father before he is able to do so, and successfully passes him off as her own.
Later, when Prince Chang returns to overthrow the Queen, she meets him in the throne room carrying her "son". Rather than give up her throne, the Queen releases infected into the palace, causing a massacre. The baby is bitten when they break into the throne room, but Seo-bi manages to save him and immerses him in water to drive out the parasites.
After Prince Chang restores order to the palace, he finds Seo-bi hiding the false heir. Chief Scholar Kim Sun tells the prince that he must kill the baby to prevent any threats to his throne. However, the prince cannot do it, and decides that for the sake of the country it is better that the truth be buried and Mu-yeong's son take the throne in his place. He orders Kim Sun to raise the "prince" well.
Seven years later, Yeom has been enthroned as the new king of Joseon. He is told that his parents and brother, Prince Chang, all died from the plague. Meanwhile, his mother secretly works in the palace as a court lady. Yeom tries to learn more about what happened, but the officials agree that the truth must be kept from him, for his own good. However, it is seen that in spite of Seo-bi's care, some parasites still remain in his body to an unknown effect.