Oldtimers on this blog know that romance isn’t the only focal point of discussion here. In my view, a serious screenwriter is one who has explored a specific concept or idea about the world — other than “love is great!” – then seeks to impart this insight to his audience. As viewers, we can reciprocate the writer’s hard work by having critical discussions about the show, and not limiting ourselves to “feels.” It often disheartens me when I go on other sites, and all I can see are drama fans reacting with:

“a;sldkgjasdg!
“My feels!”
“ohmagawd!”
“His abs are so yummy.”
“Subs please!”

I try to encourage posters and readers here to engage themselves in discussing themes, and weighing the validity or shortcomings of the writer’s assumptions. As smart Bitches, we differentiate ourselves from typical fangirls, when we deconstruct a drama and, more importantly, reconstruct it with a deeper understanding of the writer’s point-of-view, and why his message matters to us (or not).

With that long preamble, lol, let me share with you my notes loyalty as presented in these past 6 episodes.

Loyalty meant a lot of different things for these characters.

1. ChaeDol’s loyalty

For instance, ChaeDol displayed a fierce loyalty to the Princess whom he adopted as mom. For him, loyalty meant following her wherever she went, sticking to her no matter what, and making sure that she was treated fairly both by his father or her father, the King.

In my opinion, ChaeDol shows the purest form of loyalty. He hadn’t yet learned how to dissemble his true feelings and manipulate people. He would remain loyal to his “omma.”

2. ChunBae’s loyalty

Chunbae was also another loyal character. Oddly enough, he cheated BaeWoo of five nyangs, but he gladly put up with beatings for BaeWoo. I couldn’t wrap my head over that one: did he value his life less than five nyangs? lol.

He was the first one to talk about loyalty.

DaeYeob: Where do you think he hid her?
Chunbae: If I tell you, will you secretly deal with BaWoo, and only rescue your sister-in-law? (meaning he wanted BaWoo unharmed)
DY: (doesn’t answer)
CB: I don’t even know. And even if I knew, I can’t say a word.
DY: What kind of loyalty do you have towards someone who won’t even come to save you? Didn’t you say you wanted to live? Shouldn’t you save yourself first?

There! DaeYeob didn’t understand loyalty. Loyalty for him was contingent and expedient. Meaning, he would be loyal if the situation could provide him an easy way — but not necessarily a moral way — to achieve his goal. His loyalty was rather self-serving.

CB: That’s his fate.

Chunbae probably believed that unexpected things were happening to BaeWoo “for a good reason,” and he shouldn’t get in the way of fate.

CB: (continuing) I have my own problems, so why should I be concerned about someone else’s?

Chunbae said this to throw DaeYeob off. He was definitely loyal to BaWoo but he was feigning indifference to stop DaeYeob from prying further.

CB: (continuing) And also, I think the loyalty for those nobles seems to be a bit different from what us people call loyalty.
DY: Loyalty is the same for everyone. What are you saying is different?

DaeYeob might be a worthy student at the Sungkyungkwan, but he wasn’t seasoned by experience and time.

CB: BaWoo isn’t blind like a fire moth. He will die for sure if he comes here. That’s loyalty for you? I don’t expect this kind of thing.

A fire moth blindly seeks the light without caring whether it’ll singe its wings or burn to death. Chunbae thought that acting rashly wasn’t a sign of loyalty, but stupidity. Chunbae didn’t want BaWoo to prove he was loyal by rushing to save him and dying in the process.

CB: If that rascal, after my death, while swilling down alcohol, throws food on the ground as an offering to the spirits for me, I’m good with that. That’s loyalty to me.

Awww… This comment is deep.

a. ChunBae wasn’t expecting any medal or plaque for his good deed. He was going to be loyal to BaWoo because he wanted to.

There’s a glaring difference between the Prime Minister who was given the medal “Myeon Sa Cheol Gwon” for assisting the King keep the throne, and ChunBae who didn’t expect any special reward redeemable in the future in return for protecting BaWoo’s life. Genuine loyalty demanded nothing in return.

b. Also for ChunBae, loyalty means to bear somebody in mind even when that person is no longer in sight.

That’s what he was doing here in the shed. He was being loyal to BaWoo although BaWoo was out of sight, and BaWoo would never know anyway how much he suffered for him. He was loyal to an absent friend.

In this sense, filial piety is also one form of loyalty.

BaWoo was showing loyalty to his grandfather and father when he vowed to avenge their deaths. But he was tormented because he was unable to kill the Prime Minister when the chance presented itself. He told the monk, “My grandfather, my father, and my two uncles whom he glared at with such cold, unfeeling eyes. His voice when he called my grandfather a rebel leader before ordering his beheading. I swore to avenge them as long as I lived. Is it fine for me to live as if none of that happened?”

Perhaps if BaWoo were to show filial loyalty for his own grandfather and father with a simple memorial just like ChunBae had requested at his death, instead of vengeance, then he would have a peaceful life.

3. Lady Haeindang’s loyalty

DaeYeob’s aunt, Lady Haeingdang, was another loyal character but only to DaeYeob. She seemed unusually loyal to him, leading many viewers to speculate that he was her biological son.

She begged the PM’s guard for news on DaeYeob.

Aunt: By chance, if you hear any news about DaeYeob, could you also let me know?
Guard: Yes.
Aunt: (relieved) Thank you.

4. The PM’s head of the guard’s loyalty

As for this guard, I would say that he had divided loyalties. In fact, he seemed more loyal to the aunt, Lady Haeindang, than to his master. He yielded to her wish not to betray DaeYeob to his father.

Aunt: Please don’t misunderstand. DaeYeob is simply frustrated from his studies, so he briefly went off somewhere. He hasn’t gone far, so I’m sure he’ll be back soon. You know well what kind of child he was to me. Please keep this from my brother. I beg this of you. Didn’t DaeYeob consider you like his own uncle? For my sake, please.
Guard: (coldly) Please remove your hand. I am merely following his excellency’s wishes. That is all.

But when he encountered DaeYeob who pretended to have left the temple to get his books, he remembered her plea and covered up for DaeYeob.

Daeyeob’s brother: Something is suspicious. What do you think?
Guard: (dryily) It seems we missed each other.

I’ve seen this actor playing the guard in so many dramas and he always played a baddie sidekick. “River Where the Moon Rises,” “Alice,” “The King: Eternal Monarch,” “Mr. Sunshine.” I’m so ready for him to be a good guy here.

5. SooKyung’s nanny’s loyalty

As for SooKyung’s nanny, she knew she failed to be a loyal servant.

Nanny: If only I had told Royal Consort Yun as I should have, you wouldn’t have suffered so much. This is all my fault.
SK: You must have had your own reasons for not telling her.
Nanny: To be honest, I was threatened they would kill my mother and brother. Please kill me, Your Highness.
SK: But if you ran away to come here, doesn’t that put your mother and brother in danger again?
Nanny: My mother and brother left Hanyang as soon as they were released. Even I don’tknow where they are now, so they won’t be able to find them either.
SK: That’s a relief but it feels like you suffered needless hardships because of me. I’m sorry for that.
Nanny: Of course not, Your Highness. I deserve a thousand, no, ten thousand deaths for failing to protect you. I will consider this the will of the heavens for allowing me to serve you again. And I will serve you for as long as I live as an atonement for my sins.
SK: You must be exhausted from your long journey. Please rest. From now on, if I’m too exhausted to continue, shouldn’t you carry me on your shoulders?
Nanny: Don’t worry, Your Highness. No matter where it is, I’ll carry you there.

Three things here:

a. Loyalty for the Nanny meant devotion and service. She knew she failed to protect her and wanted to atone by showing that she could be trusted and relied upon to sacrifice herself for the Princess.

b. I think this was the reason Nanny kicked up a big fuss when the slave hunters were dragging them, and the Princess stumbled. She attacked them repeatedly, despite being beaten back down easily. Unlike the time when she didn’t want to sacrifice her mother’s and brother’s lives for SooKyung, she wasn’t afraid to sacrifice her own life.

c. It was the Nanny who promised to carry the Princess on her shoulder but as it turned out, it was the Princess who metaphorically carried her Nanny on her shoulder on their long trek.

Because the Nanny became injured, the slave hunters threatened to kill her for delaying their mission. The Princess warned them that she wouldn’t budge if they touched her Nanny. In effect, she was showing loyalty – as per the Nanny’s definition of loyalty – because she was protecting her Nanny with her life. Ha!

6. The King’s loyalty

The King seemed to be the most disloyal person in this story.

a. The king had no loyalty to Yi YiCheom, one of the men who put him in power.

King: Do you know which monarch granted the most pardons with the Myeon Sa Cheol Gwon? It was the Chinese emperor Zhu Yuanzhang.
Lady Kim: He must have granted it to his retainers at the founding of his dynasty.
King: That is correct. They helped him establish the Ming Dynasty and the country of Ming. He gave it to those who helped him ascend the throne. In my case, Yi YiCheom, who helped me ascend my throne, is like those people. But what happened to them? Li Shanchang, Lan Yu, and the rest? Most of those who were second only to the emperor in wielding power died. Myeong Sa Cheol Gown had only one exception to avoid punishment, right? The crime of treason! Do you truly believe they all plotted treason? Like you mentioned a few days ago, the calf that is larger than the thigh is useless. Yi YiCheom has grown too great.

What goes around, comes around.

Because the King maintained power by removing everyone who posed a threat to his reign, he was paranoid that his once-loyal Yi YiCheon was also about to turn against him and remove him from power. He cited the Chinese emperor as an example of someone who eliminated his own loyal crew before they could wrest power from him.

Note here: his daughter, Princess HwaIn/SooKyung had a different mindset from him. Although many people failed her, e.g., like her father, and her nanny, she didn’t waver in her loyalty to them. She didn’t turn against them.

b. The king also showed no loyalty to his own daughter. Sure, he felt guilty that he had to sacrifice her, but in the end, what’s a guilty conscience worth when it didn’t even deter him?

ChunBae: So that Kim Ja Jeom fellow hired the slave hunters to capture the princess. There must be a reason, right?
BaWoo: How many times do I have to tell you? The King must’ve given the order. This naïve young master has been pleasantly fooled by the King.
DaeYeob: (stirring because he resented what Bawoo said)
BaWoo: What? Is there a rule saying that kings can’t betray you?

BaWoo was a cynic, unlike DaeWoo. He knew from experience that the royalty and the nobility would eat their own if that would ensure their survival.

“Saturn Devouring His Son” — a painting by Goya. Remember this painting from that kdrama, “W: Two Worlds”?

BaWoo: (continuing) The question is…why he has come back to capture the princess? One mistake and everyone will know that the princess is alive. What convinced him to do a risky thing like working with slave hunters?
DaeYeob: It’s because of my sister-in-law. He wants to have my sister-in-law in his pocket before my father does. That way he has justification to strike down my father.
ChunBae: (stunned) So just to win their power struggles, he’s putting his daughter back in harm’s way again?

To ChunBae, this was unthinkable. If he had put himself in harm’s way to protect BaWoo, it was inconceivable to him that a father would endanger his daughter so.

7. Lady Kim’s loyalty

She’s loyal.

8. DaeYeob’s loyalty

DaeYeob’s understanding of loyalty was a work-in-progress.

Donkey Old Man: This must be the first time you’re seeing this child (referring to DY), Your Majesty.
King: Have you seen me before?
DY: I have seen you from afar before when you were visiting Sungkyunkwan.
King: So that was the case. I did hear that he’s seen me before.
Yi YeCheom: Yes, Your Majesty. It happened a while back so I don’t recall it perfectly. He said you made him a promise.

He was indirectly referring to the “Myeon Sa Cheol Gwon” (MSCG). He was letting the King know that he knew DaeYeob had returned the medal to him, and the King was obligated to forgive him. But the King was trying to weasel out of his  promise by pretending to be forgetful.

King: Is that so? That happened in the past for me too so I cannot recall it perfectly. So, what kind of promise did I make?

DaeYeob knew he needed to be careful. He couldn’t bring up the MSCG directly, but he still had to remind the king of his promise.

Donkey Old Man: This old man is also wonder what kind of promises was His Majesty making to young scholars. Go ahead and respond.
DY: He mentioned Shang Yang, the renowned scholar of the Qin dynasty during the Sengoku period. And his proverb about moving trees to instill faith. He said that the words of politicians are the same as a thousand pieces of gold. He instructed they should never say a lie. And he promised that he would also never do such a thing.

The King knew DaeYeob outsmarted him. Since he admitted earlier that he couldn’t recall this encounter, he couldn’t insist that he never made such a promise. While the old Donkey Man was praising the King’s wise words, he was unaware that the King had trapped himself into acknowledging (tacitly, at least) that he had to forgive Yi YiCheom anything outside of treason.

Donkey Old Man: (saying aloud the proverb) “Move a tree to instill faith” When you move a tree, if you promised to give ten gold pieces, you give ten gold pieces. And if you promised to give fifty, you give fifty. If politicians dare to lie, how could the citizens trust in and obey the government? You heard precious and wise words.
Yi YiCheom: Speaking of such things is easy, but following through is difficult.

In other words, actions spoke louder than words. He was letting the King know that he couldn’t disregard the MSCG.

For Daeyeob, this encounter with the King must have been instructive. He learned the following about loyalty:

a. Loyalty is following through on one’s promises even when it’s difficult.
b. Loyalty is vital in a social contract. If the king betrays them, then the king can expect retaliatory action.
c. Loyalty can be weaponized.
d. Loyalty is family preservation first.

He realized that the King was truly intent on destroying his father and family. But I doubt that his reaction would be similar to SooKyung who wanted to remain loyal to her father while at the same time, protect DaeYeob’s family from her father’s actions.

SooKyung was willing to disappear so she wouldn’t be used like the arrow in their battle.

Remember this scene?

The real arrow in this drama was SooKyung, and BaWoo’s words, “I wish for you to not experience such cruel things,” was prophetic. He wouldn’t want her involved in the political conflict of the King and the Yi YiCheom.

9. SooKyung’s loyalty

lol. I know some viewers find SooKyung’s stoicism annoying. To me, however, she was displaying her loyalty to BaWoo.

Nanny: That accursed fool. It’d be perfect if he could rescue us now. Why did he even follow us onto that boat?
SK: (calmly) If he was going to come, don’t you think he’d be here by now?
Nanny: (frustrated) Your Highness, aren’t you even resentful of him?
SK: I’m sure he has his reasons.
Nanny: Your Highness! He’s the ruffian that took you in a bossam and brough you to this! How could you speak up for such a man? I…I just want to kill him. I hate him so much.
SK: When I think of the day of the bossam, my whole body trembles even now. I think I could never forgive him. There were many times I hated and resented him so much I could die. But I also discovered living can be fun.

This is loyalty for her:

a. forgiving
b. speaking up in defense of him
c. focusing on the good instead of the bad
d. and keeping the faith

Although she repeatedly told her Nanny that BaWoo wasn’t coming and she wasn’t expecting BaWoo to come rescue them, she let it slip that she was actually hoping he’d come. That’s why she looked happy when he arrived. His appearance proved that her faith in him wasn’t misplaced.

BW: And should someone like that look so happy when I came to rescue you?
SK: That was because we met on the boat. I had secretly hoped—
BW: Then you should’ve believed in me to the end.

lol. BaWoo was hurt because he believed that she didn’t have faith in him. He wanted her to trust in him because he would rescue her, come hell or high water. I think for Bawoo, having trust is part of loyalty.

Also when we think about this, SooKyung showed loyalty to her father, too. Although the King didn’t deserve her loyalty, she understood and forgave his actions. She tried to kill herself when she realized he wasn’t going to welcome her back into the family because of politics. She didn’t want any harm to fall on the monarchy and the country.

SooKyung’s loyalty was steadfast.

These are my brief notes on loyalty. If you notice but BaWoo’s concept of loyalty is missing. I’m leaving it for you to think about. 🙂