The Nokdu Flower (녹두꽃)

Who is the ogre?

What is wrong?

The runaway soldiers committed a forced marriage in Gobu.

The woman was Myung Sim, the younger sister of Seok Ju.

They got into a fight with furious aristocrats.

A large number of people were injured and killed.

In the end,

Baek Yi Hyun shot the runaway soldiers to death...

and disappeared.

Yi Hyun...

did what?

Tell me the truth.

The leader of Tenyukyo...

should not use a Joseon name.

I shall give you a Japanese name.

I have decided one for myself already.

That is right.

Yi Hyun is...

Oni.

the ogre.

You fool.

I am very sorry.

You will come to the headquarter of Jipgangso and stand trial.

Okay.

General, if you hold a trial, everybody will find out.

Think about all that he has done until now...

and turn a blind eye just this once.

Do you think the others will also turn a blind eye on this?

If that was the case, I would not even have asked about the ogre.

I will do what you say.

The ogre was your younger brother?

I am sorry.

You darn punk.

You were our boss.

How could you lie to your men like this?

Was I supposed to tell the truth then?

That my brother is the ogre and that we should kill him?

What did you say?

Hold your anger.

Darn it.

I understand since he was your younger brother.

But you are no longer my boss.

You should have stopped him from becoming a Jipgang.

You and your brother...

killed Beon Gae twice. Do you know that?

Yes.

This is the true nature of the people...

of the Baek family.

This is ridiculous! - How could it be?

This is nonsense. - What should we do? Goodness.

You are guilty for having helped Official Baek Yi Hyun,

the man who killed many of our soldiers including Kim Hak Soo.

You are guilty for staying quiet when he became the Jipgang of Gobu.

And thus, you are also guilty for having caused...

the bloodshed in Gobu.

Those are the things that Baek Yi Kang is guilty of.

Do you plead guilty?

Do not worry.

I am going somewhere nice.

Yes, I do.

How could you do that? - My gosh.

You are unbelievable. - This is crazy.

How could you do such a thing?

Be quiet, everyone! Silence!

Please begin the discussion.

General. - Have they come to a decision?

Everyone utterly hates the ogre.

What did they decide on?

They decided on the expulsion of him from the Donghak army.

This is way too harsh.

He did make a mistake.

But it was his younger brother.

You should at least cut him some slack.

That is exactly why we are expelling him.

That is the worst punishment a Donghak follower can get.

How can you be so quiet about this?

Are you really going to cut ties with him like this?

I want you to hold a retrial unless you wish to see me go crazy.

Hold a retrial!

That is enough.

Commander Son.

The headquarter of Jipgangso has reached a verdict.

You need to abide by it.

I will...

accept the verdict.

I am sorry for causing trouble.

Do not be so distressed.

Go back to Gobu and stay out of trouble.

I will not go to Gobu.

Please let me serve in the war as a commoner.

What are you talking about?

The King has ordered you to take arms...

and form a loyal army again.

I will serve you from afar and head to Hanyang.

We will not be raising an army.

Kyeong Sun, I want you to dismiss...

all the men who have volunteered and gathered here to fight.

Yes, General. - What are you talking about?

Japan is about to take over Joseon.

But you are not going to raise an army?

General. - The prerequisite...

of the peace treaty was to dismiss the Donghak soldiers.

What do you think will happen if we raise an army?

The treaty will get canceled, and the Reform Bill and Jipgangso...

will all become completely useless.

You can show the secret letter to Minister Kim Hak Jin.

If we tell them that we got orders from the King,

he will not be able to cancel the treaty.

The district magistrates and aristocrats...

who are against the Reform Bill...

will use this as an opportunity...

to get rid of the Jigpangso in their districts.

Will we have to show the secret letter to every single one of them?

So you are not going to raise an army...

just so you can protect the treaty?

Yes.

General.

Our country is about to get destroyed.

Which is more important? Our country or the Jipgangso?

The treaty is only one problem.

It will be hard to gather soldiers...

because the harvest season is coming up.

And by the looks of what the Japanese are doing,

it is very unlikely that we will win the war against them.

My goodness.

You guys suddenly have so many excuses.

I guess you never really wanted to fight.

What did you say? - Enough.

You should go now.

Since when...

did it matter so much for you to think about what is reasonable?

I know I am in no position to say this to you.

But I am very...

I am very disappointed in you.

That darn punk.

How dare you?

I am the secretary who serves Joseon's king.

That is why we are here.

You are...

a Joseon person?

I am a civilized man.

Secretary Lee Geon Hyung has been away.

Do you know where he is?

No one at the Secretariat knows either.

That blows.

But we cannot question the King.

I have a feeling he was sent as a secret emissary.

Where to?

To someone who can fight Japan.

Jeon Bong Jun in Jeolla Province is Joseon's only hope.

Your king is not that bold a man.

When close to someone who is bold,

even a coward can become bold.

Heungseon Daewongun.

I must see the legation officer.

Oh, right.

I have news that will please you.

The National Military Administration...

was established to carry out Joseon's reform.

They confirmed the first reform plan.

The civil service exam will be scrapped...

and a Japanese bureaucracy will take its place.

Is there anything more powerful?

The caste system will be abolished.

That is...

powerful.

It is a reform.

The Gabo Reform.

"In the year of the horse,"

"instead of the Qing's era name,"

"Joseon will count its years starting from the foundation year."

"The National Military Administration announces this."

"Taxes will be paid not in goods but in cash."

"Measurements will be unified,"

"and a monetary system based on silver will be implemented."

"Hanyang will have a Police Office, and provinces will have policemen,"

"so security will be separated from administration."

"Widows can remarry,"

"child marriages are forbidden,"

"and guilt-by-association is outlawed."

"The central court will be..."

"divided into two offices,"

"and the defense offices..."

"will be divided into six subcategories..."

"and stationed under Uijeongbu."

If the Uijeongbu takes over the operation of our defense,

they will be in control.

Not at all.

The man who controls Uijeongbu will have all the power.

Who is that?

The man who took over from Otori Keisuke a few days ago.

The ex-Home Affairs Minister Inoue Kaoru.

I heard he is a fearsome man.

Not even Ito Hirobumi can control him.

If they sent him as a legation officer,

it means they are determined to take us down.

Our Emperor is greatly satisfied...

by first reform issued...

by the National Military Administration.

The first reform issued...