The Nokdu Flower (녹두꽃)

I know you have received a secret letter from the King.

And?

If you decide to raise an army,

I will hand over all the rice...

and the peddlers of Jeolla Province...

to you.

You do not believe me.

I am looking for a reason to believe you.

Were you not informed...

that we helped Yi Kang and the detached force...

in Hanyang?

I was. To be more exact,

Master Choi was the one who helped.

You just kept silent about what happened.

That was also an act of taking a risk on my end.

Yes, I agree with that.

But you still...

cannot trust me?

Because that is the best you can do.

Staying quiet.

That is what I have perceived of you until now.

I will not raise an army.

You should leave now.

I saw Baek Yi Hyun.

He has become a leader of an organization called Tenyukyo.

And apparently, his Japanese name is Oni.

What a crazy punk.

I have witnessed the Japanese violating the royal palace.

I have witnessed horrible deaths.

And worst of all,

I have witnessed the incompetence of the royal family and court.

However, none of that was more terrible than the sight...

of how much Baek Yi Hyun had changed.

General.

I do not want myself nor the peddlers of this country...

to end up becoming an ogre like Baek Yi Hyun.

And more importantly, I do not wish to become...

a rich slave...

who sells my soul to the Japanese.

Please...

trust me.

Did Deok Ki go somewhere?

He went to buy the rice crops before the harvest...

to sell those to Takeda's men.

He should be careful so that he does not get caught.

Do not worry.

We made it seem like he is dealing...

with rice stores of Joseon.

How do you feel?

What do you mean?

Selling rice to the Japanese during times like this...

is considered an act of betraying your country.

No one will give me any credit for not selling it to them.

And someone will eventually do it.

So it would be foolish not to.

You are right.

You must have learned a thing or two about the world.

I am back.

Okay, you should go now.

Did you secure enough rice?

Yes.

You do not seem so happy.

I have something to tell you.

Let me speak first.

I cannot do this.

I know I should not be doing this.

But I cannot sell rice to the Japanese.

Ask someone else to take my place.

Then what will you do for a living?

I am a healthy man.

I am sure I will find something.

Most of the jobless beggars you see on the street...

are all pretty much healthy.

Then I will just become a beggar.

Even so,

I cannot do something that goes against my conscience.

I will sometimes come by to visit your father.

You need to pick someone to replace you before you go.

There are tons of guys who will take my place.

Not many of them would be willing to risk their lives.

Why would they need to risk their lives to sell rice?

They are not going to war.

What if that is the case?

What are you talking about?

I am going to give the rice...

to the loyal army...

so that they can have enough strength...

to defeat the Japanese.

Are you still going to quit?

Hurray! - Hurray!

Hurray! - Hurray!

Hurray! - Hurray!

Hurray! - Hurray!

We have achieved a great victory.

We defeated the army in Pyongyang.

And our fleet defeated the Beiyang Fleet...

on the Yellow Sea.

I knew you would win.

But that was so easy.

We did it.

If we push ahead a bit more,

we will be able to invade Qing.

You are planning to cross the borders of Joseon?

Yes, of course.

We will not stop with Joseon.

Manchuria, Liaodong,

and all the other areas of the continent...

deserve to have a taste of civilization.

That is the mission of Japan, the highest civilized nation...

of Asia.

Do not worry too much.

They may be losing, but Qing is a very big country.

They will not lose to a small country like Japan.

We are in a very urgent situation.

Why have I not heard from Jeon Bong Jun yet?

Jeon Bong Jun?

I sent a secret emissary and told him to raise an army.

What is your opinion on the King's secret letter?

The King may have asked you to raise an army.

But I have an obligation to keep the law of this country...

and the treaty between the two nations as the governor.

I will not ask for your soldiers.

We just need your weapons.

I will support you with all our weapons and gunpowder.

Governor.

Thank you.

Please get rid of the Japanese...

from our country.

I will do that.

The peddlers will be giving us rice,

and we have the government soldiers' weapons.

Once we join forces with the bukjeob and Commander Kim,

we will easily be able to raise an army.

Did you find out Yi Kang's whereabouts?

Yes.

He appeared at the Jipgangso in Gobu two days ago.

Oni.

Did you find Lee Geon Hyung?

Yes.

I ordered some men to catch him...

while he was trying to enter the palace.

I will ask Takeda to give you a promotion.

Thank you.

Where have you been?

Who are you?

It is best that you do not know...

because you did not meet me today.

What kind of nonsense is that?

It means nothing will happen to you if you tell us everything.

I know you met Jeon Bong Jun.

You went there to tell him that the King asked him to raise an army.

That is nonsense. Jeon Bong Jun is a traitor.

Why would the King give such orders to a traitor?

Let us cut to the chase.

What was Jeon Bong Jun's answer?

I heard he dismissed everyone who volunteered to fight.

But I think he is trying to make the Japanese lower their guards.

How dare you?

Are you not ashamed of betraying your own country?

You should save your face as an aristocrat...

and just tell me the truth.

The aristocrats of Joseon are so obsessed about saving their faces.

So you should save yours.

Tell me.

What was Jeon Bong Jun's answer?

How is Yoo Wol doing?

She must be getting seriously ill. She moaned all night.

Oh, my.

Master Baek wants to see you.

What is the matter?

What is your plan?

Now that you got kicked out, you should change horses.

But there is no other horse. - What are you talking about?

From the Japanese to Pastor Min Jong Ryul in Naju,

there are many horses you can choose from.

After riding a horse called Jeon Bong Jun,

no other horses satisfy me.

I think I will take my time. There is no hurry anyway.

If you are not interested in changing horses,

go somewhere far away with Yoo Wol.

Live happily as a farmer with her.

Would it not be more touching...

if you gave me a little money while saying that?

I know that the Jipgangso received donations.

I heard the vault is full of valuable things.

Why are you trying to send us away?

If Yoo Wol does not stop acting up,

even the Baek family will be destroyed sooner or later.

I thought the Baek family was destroyed when Yi Hyun disappeared.

He will come back when the world changes.

The Baek family has not come to an end yet.

Is that right?

I think I should hold out here to see what happens.

Now that I am speaking nicely,

do I look easy?

A dog...

shuts its mouth before biting.

If you do not take her away,

something might happen to her.

Those masked scum...