A great tragedy has once again been hinted at for Cha Joo-young in 'Wongyeong'. Not only has she faced devastation, but the youngest prince has contracted a highly fatal infectious disease. As the final episode approaches, the sorrow has reached its peak, with ratings soaring to a high of 7.5%, breaking its own record once again.
The ratings for the tvN X TVING original drama 'Wongyeong' (written by Lee Young-mi, directed by Kim Sang-ho), which aired on the 10th, were an average of 5.8% nationwide, with a peak of 7.5%, an average of 5.4% in the metropolitan area, and a peak of 7.4%, once again breaking its own record and maintaining the number one spot in the same time slot among cable and general programming channels. (Based on paid platforms including cable, IPTV, and satellite/Nielsen Korea provided)
In this episode, the deep anguish and complex emotions of Wongyeong (Cha Joo-young) and Lee Bang-won (Lee Hyun-wook) were intertwined as they navigated the prince's qualities as a king and the legitimacy of the heir apparent, amidst the king and queen, father and mother. The couple read the qualities of a king from Prince Chungnyeong (Park Sang-hoon). Unlike Prince Yangnyeong (Moon Sung-hyun), who was only concerned with his own interests, Chungnyeong was eager to do something for the starving people, contemplating ways to alleviate their suffering and planning to compile a book based on references.
However, Lee Bang-won deliberately turned a blind eye to this. He feared that if a prince who was not the heir ascended the throne, the bloodshed he experienced among his own kin would happen again. Lee Bang-won summoned Yangnyeong and Chungnyeong and firmly stated, "The tradition of the heir succeeding the throne is unchangeable." He also secured a promise from Chungnyeong to dedicate his profound scholarship solely for the crown prince. He earnestly advised the crown prince to focus solely on the goal of becoming a wise king, assuring him that everyone would help.
However, contrary to Lee Bang-won's fervent wishes, the crown prince's behavior continued. He neglected his studies, went hunting using the people as game, and indulged in drinking. Moreover, he was enchanted by a courtesan, dressing her in court lady attire and secretly hiding her in the crown prince's palace, even accepting bribes from exiled criminals. When Lee Bang-won sternly reprimanded him, the ministers, including his maternal uncle Min Mu-hyeol (Lee Chan-hee) and Min Mu-jil (Oh Jung-taek), openly defied him, treating the national foundation with disdain.
Lee Bang-won dealt with those who disturbed the crown prince. In place of Lee Bang-won, who did not show firm trust, he sent the powerful minister Lee Suk-beon (Park Yong-woo), who had bribed the crown prince and led him into indulgence, into exile. Despite Wongyeong's earnest pleas, he ordered the execution of Min Mu-hyeol and Min Mu-jil, who had humiliated the crown prince. When the concubine Yeong-sil (Lee Si-ah) became pregnant, he used the excuse that the Min family had sent someone to abandon her in the fields. This was a way to punish them without bringing up the incident of the Min family's humiliation of the crown prince.
In the end, with the remaining younger siblings dead and facing devastation, Wongyeong understood better than anyone the underlying reasons for her husband's actions. He was doing what was necessary as a king to establish the crown prince as a powerful ruler. With tears of despair, Wongyeong conveyed her father's deep intentions to the crown prince and taught him about the responsibilities of a king. She warned him sternly that if he could not embody the qualities of a king, Lee Seong-gye (Lee Seong-min), the Grand King, would turn his sharp blade towards the crown prince, just as he had done.
Amidst this, another tragedy was foreshadowed at the end of the broadcast. The youngest prince, Seongnyeong, born from the love between Wongyeong and Lee Bang-won before going to war, has contracted a highly fatal infectious disease, smallpox.
Wongyeong and Lee Bang-won did their best as parents amidst the indescribable pain and sorrow of possibly losing their son. Wongyeong stayed by Seongnyeong's side, devoted to his care, while Lee Bang-won held the physician's hand tightly, pleading, "Please save him." Even in the midst of this, Wongyeong, the 'Queen Mother', implored Lee Bang-won to take care of the people as the epidemic spread.
As history shows, the death of Seongnyeong and the deposition of Yangnyeong have been foreshadowed. Attention is focused on what final story Wongyeong and Lee Bang-won will write within this context. The final episode of 'Wongyeong' will air on the 11th at 8:50 PM on tvN. On Tving, episodes 11-12, which were pre-released on the 10th, can be enjoyed simultaneously.
[Lee Da-gyeom, Star Today Reporter]
