The PD congratulates them as they come back from the courtroom. Jin-Joo tells Yo Han that she thought everything was over when the female part-timer signed the agreement. She says she was ashamed as a judge.
Yo Han tells Jin Joo to not be ashamed. He tells her that they are a team and he walks away after giving the team a proud smile. After they walk away, the PD is overjoyed that this scene was recorded by his staff.
Meanwhile, Young Min asks his father if he is going to be sentenced to 200 years. His father reassures him but Young-Min doesn’t buy it. He says Yo Han will do anything to gain popularity among the commoners.
Yo Han returns to his office and receives a call from Cha. She asks him why he is going this far. He asks why her son treated the people like that. Cha says Young Min has been through a lot and he hasn’t learnt to control his temper. She says he isn’t a bad person. Yo Han asks if this is how she spoke when she was a prosecutor. Cha asks to meet.
Yo Han meets Cha at a parking lot at night. Cha asks what she must do for him to let her son go. She asks if he is doing this for popularity. She says she can give him a bigger prey, the President.
Yo Han says 19 years ago, Cha had investigated a young politician with a bright future for bribery. He says she got him a guilty verdict despite knowing he didn’t take the bribe. He says the man was a trademark for morals and he took his own life leaving behind a son in middle school.
Yo Han asks Cha if she thought about this even once during her successful career of 19 years. Cha says the investigation was legal.
Yo Han tells her to tells the truth about that case to the media if she wants him to let her son go.
After Cha drives away, K walks up to Yo Han. Yo Han says people don’t change easily. K thanks, Yo Han. Yo Han glances at K and gives his shoulder a reassuring squeeze before walking away.
Ga-on uses the keys this time and unlocks the room where Ji was speaking to the photograph. He picks up the photograph of Issac, his wife and Elijah on the table.
He is startled as glass shatters against the wall. A furious Elijah tells him to get out. Ga-on apologises and walks away.
Yo Han returns from work and he microwaves beef and rice for dinner. He learns that Elijah also had the same thing and wonders if they have the same taste.
Ga-on walks in and asks if Yo Han always eats alone. Yo Han asks if eating with someone changes anything. He says the most dangerous thing in the whole world are humans.
The next morning, Elijah finds French Toast served on the table for breakfast. Later she tells Ji that the toast was tasty. Ji says she didn’t make it. Ga-on says he is glad she liked it. She looks up to see him smile and walk away.
Cha seems troubled. She refuses to ask the old man for help. Her secretary says the public trusts in only two organisations, the live court and the Social responsibility foundation. She refers to the public as beggars and ignorant pigs. He says the prosecution is trusted by only 12 % of the population.
Sun-A receives a call from Cha asking to speak to Chairman Seo. Sun-A says he is meditating and offers to relay her message. After hearing her out, Sun-A speaks in a comforting tone that she understands Cha’s situation. She says they can work it out. After hanging up, Sun A says her ears hurt as Cha talks too much.
Sun-A writes out an invitation to Judge Kang Yo Han.
Ga-on finds the cat in the living room. He lifts it gently. Elijah comes in and says the cat doesn’t like strangers. He says he is very popular among stray cats. She says Yo Han picked up the stray cat. She says he keeps doing it though it is out of character.
She asks if he believes the image on Tv that he fights for justice and loves the powerless. She says the cat hunts for mice despite feeding it food. She says they hunt for fun.
She says the only thing she thinks about every day is how Yo Han came to inherit the house.
Later, Ga-on calls Soo Hyun and asks to speak with the detective who investigated the Church fire. He hangs up abruptly as Yo Han walks in without knocking. Ga-on protests but Yo Han emphasises that this is his house. Ga-on says he wants to stay here longer. Yo Han asks if Ga-on is curious or he wants to find out something.
Yo Han abruptly says he wants to take Ga-on somewhere and asks him to follow him.
Ga-on follows Yo Han into his walk-in closet. Yo Han picks out a suit, tie and watch for Ga-on. Ga-on waits for Yo Han to go out but Yo Han doesn’t. Ga-on gestures for him to go out. Yo Han smirks and goes out saying that is a first. Before leaving, Yo Han turns around and says Ga-on’s wound has healed.
Yo Han watches Ga-on intently as he steps into the room in the suit. He gives Ga-on a trench coat and Ga-on wears it. Just then, Elijah comes in and both of them tease Yo Han by calling him an old man. Ga-on wheels her out of the room.
Later, Yo Han leads Ga-on into the parking lot which has many cars. He throws the keys to Ga-on and tells him to drive.
They enter the party hosted by The Social Responsibility foundation. Yo Han leaves Ga-on with Sun A so he can go mingle. Soon he is surrounded by the female sponsors of the foundation.
Yo Han notices this from far and he comes and brings Ga-on away.
Once they are out of earshot, Sun-Ah smiles as she comments that Yo Han is Ga-on’s chaperone
Ga-on says he doesn’t need to be chaperoned. Yo Han brings him to a secluded place where Chairman Park and Chairman Min are seated. Yo Han sits beside them while Ga-on remains standing.
Yo Han smiles as they invite Ga-on to join their study session where they worry about their country and discuss current affairs. They all get up and go to the hall as President Heo arrives.
Sun-A gives a speech acknowledging the sponsors and their donations. She then introduces Chairman Seo who walks up to the stage.
Ga-on notices Yo Han clapping slowly.
Yo Han goes and sits at the table as Seo starts his speech on benevolence. For every word that he speaks about compassion, the sponsors (Heo, Min, Park and their spouses)laugh as if he cracked a joke. Yo Han laughs hard too and Ga-on scowls at this.
Soon Seo and Sun-A join them at the table.
President Heo tells Seo that he will wholeheartedly support the Dream Home project. Chairman Min notes that Heo is a changed man today. Heo says he is always worried for his citizens.
Soon the waiters come in and they are served food. The waitress who is filling Seo’s glass frowns as he paws her. She looks at him and he tells her to fill it slowly as he runs his hand up her legs. Yo Han, Sun A and Ga-on notice the waitress tremble as she fills his glass.
Sun-A pushes the waitress away and gets up. She tells Seo that there is an urgent phone call for him and escorts him downstairs.
Relief floods over the waitress’ face as she heads over to the restroom to gather herself.
Sun-A brings him to a private room and as he starts to apologise, she turns around and punches him hard on the face. Seo howls in pain as he falls. She asks if he can’t behave decently for at least an hour. He bows and apologises saying he commits sins. She tells him to repent and he repeatedly bangs his head on the floor.
She asks him if he is the advocate for the slums who is nominated for the Nobel Prize. Seo says he is just a dog and a piece of trash. Seo says he hid behind an empty name and dirtied weak women. He stops himself as she glares at him.
She sits beside him and slaps him repeatedly as she says that a person doesn’t become dirty just because a dog bites them. He tells her she is right. Sun-A says he should repent for a month now and she will tell that he is praying for the nation.
Back at the dinner table, Yo Han is praised for coming back strong despite the tragedy that struck him 10 years back. Soon the topic shifts to Young Min. Heo’s wife says she knew him as a sweet and kind kid. Ga-on tells them that they can’t discuss an ongoing trial. He is told that they are discussing the infringement of judicial independence.
They wonder if Yo Han will take responsibility if something happens because of continuously provoking the public. Yo Han smiles.
Ga-on calls them out and asks them to watch what he is saying. Yo Han grabs Ga-on by the coat and pushes him to the corner with a glare.
Heo comments that Ga-on doesn’t know his place and the women laugh.
Yo Han paces around the table as he asks why it has to be Cha who has to protect all their fortunes while having so many enemies around.
Yo Han puts his hand over Heo’s shoulder. Heo says Cha need not be the next President. He says it should be someone who is popular among the people. Chairman Park says they should go with the person who is still standing. Heo says this hurts his ear and everyone bursts into laughter. Ga-on watches the most powerful people in the country laughing like insane people. Yo Han’s smile fades as his eyes meet Ga-on’s.
Ga- heads to the washroom and he runs into Sun A on the way back. She says she hears unwitting things while running errands. She adds that it is a totally different image of Yo Han in that room from what is shown on TV.
Ga-on asks if she knows something about Yo Han and promises to keep it a secret.
Sun-A says that there was an event on the day the church fire occurred. She says Yo Han’s elder brother was to sign a contract that he will donate all his wealth to the Social Responsibility Foundation. She says the building was old and people got buried inside. She mentions that Issac and his wife died that day but miraculously Yo Han survived.
She says Yo Han cancelled the donation as soon as he got back from the hospital. She says he also brought a note from the Doctor that Issac was of a weak mind and was incapable of making sound decisions. She says every time she is bothered when she sees the live trial.
Yo Han is distant and quiet on the drive back. He asks why Ga-on has a weird face and Ga-on doesn’t answer. Yo Han pulls the steering to one side and laughs as Ga-on is startled. Ga-on yells at him and Yo Han says Ga-on should have answered.
Yo Han asks if he is disappointed by the real world. Ga-on says that is the real side of the rich. Yo Han says the poor aren’t different as all humans are equal in front of greed.
The next day the news says that the prosecution has not submitted the modified indictment on Young Min’s case yet. Cha sees a group of protestors outside her office urging her to resign. They even throw eggs at her.
As Cha enters her office, she receives a call from the Foundation asking her to deal with it. She recalls Yo Han’s ultimatum where he said he would let her son go if she told the truth about the Young Politician’s case.
At night, Cha’s husband offers to sell his company and give it to Yo Han. He says they were busy with their careers and didn’t notice that Young Min needed help. He says it is their fault that Young Min turned out like that and they should protect him. He recalls the say Young-min overdosed. Cha says she will do whatever it takes to protect her son.
At the courthouse, Jin Ju is nervous as she switches the TV on to check Cha’s urgent Press Meet.
Cha says she has failed as a mother. She apologises for her son’s actions. She says the prosecutors have submitted a modified indictment to habitual assault. She says she expects the judges to hand out a severe punishment tomorrow.
Yo Han watches the press meet from his office.
Young Min and his father can’t believe their ears as they hear this. Young Min clutches his head in shock and his father gives him some pills.
Yo Han comments that Cha’s Political ambitions beat her motherly instinct.
Cha concludes the press meet by saying those who commit crimes must be severely punished.
Later Cha thinks that nothing comes without a sacrifice.
The next morning the trial begins.
The attorney states that the defendant deeply regrets his actions and he asks the Judges to take the mitigating circumstances into consideration. He says the defendant was a lonely child and he gave up his parents for the economy. Young Min’s father says that this happened because of the parents.
Yo Han notes that the defendant grew up with a house full of staff.
The attorney says he grew up seeing the staff steal from them and he developed a fear of the poor. He says this is the basis for Young Min’s behaviour and he submits psychiatrist reports.
Meanwhile, Soo Hyun and Ga-on meet the detective of the church fire. He is a chef now and runs his own restaurant. they say they are here to increase Yo Han’s popularity. They ask about the church fire. Soo-Hyun asks about the charity event and the detective asks her what that event had to do with Yo Han’s popularity.
Ga-on says the cause of the fire was unknown. The man says the church was made of wood and probably a cigarette to the curtains would have done it. He says he visited Yo Han in the hospital after the fire but Yo Han didn’t remember much.
The detective switches on the live trial and sits down to watch.
Young Min’s father defends his son by taking responsibility for Young Min’s behaviour. Yo Han says that Young Min wasn’t disciplined.
Young Min’s father bursts into tears. The attorney says it takes a village to raise a child and they should embrace Young Min into society. He says the defendant will give monetary compensation to the victims. He adds that imprisoning the victims won’t feed the victims and Yo Han smiles.
The defense counsel apologises if he overstepped the line. Yo Han says he didn’t and he agrees with the counsel.
Yo Han says he has come up with a verdict that won’t cost any tax money nor will the defendant be isolated from society for a long time. He says that the defendant will face pain temporarily as it is the most economical and efficient punishment. Jin Joo seems confused.
Yo Han says, “Flagellation” (flogging).
Ga-on and Soo Hyun are speechless as the detective cheers.
Yo Han says as it takes a village to raise a child, society should discipline him where his parents failed.
The attorney objects saying that it is barbaric. Yo Han says that would be considered an insult to countries who still carry out this punishment. Yo Han says the verdict is based on the Special Act on Strengthening Law and Order, suggested by Minister Cha, Young Min’s mother.
Cha is furious as she hears the judgement.
Meanwhile, Young Min gets up and starts apologising profusely to everyone including the victims.
Yo Han says they should check what the public thinks.
Young Min watches as the voting climbs on the guilty side. He loses his temper.
He comes to the centre and asks what makes the onlookers so special. He asks how they are different from him. he asks who gives them the right to judge him. He says he apologised. Young Min gets down on his knees and apologises to Yo Han. He begs Yo Han to let him go this one time.
Yo Han gets up and sentences Young Min to 30 floggings following the public opinion. He adds that this is the most humanitarian sentencing compared to Young Min’s misdeeds. He says the sentence will be carried transparently in front of the nation. Yo Han gives Young Min a cold smile before walking out of the courtroom.
Meanwhile, Ga-on watches the detective who says Yo Han should become President. Ga On asks if he knew that Yo Han cancelled the donation that his brother gave. He adds that it is a motive for a crime. The detective is worked up and tells off Ga-on for bad-mouthing Yo Han.
Before leaving, Soo Hyun says that she knows that the detective’s retirement money wouldn’t have been enough to open this restaurant. She says he had a lot of gambling debt too. She points out that he retired two months after closing the case.
Cha struggles as she brings herself to sign the sentencing order.
Lee Young Min is brought to the place and his sentence is carried out.
The sentencing is broadcasted live across the country.
Ga-on watches this and he sees that some people cheering in the crowd are wearing T-shirts with Yo Han’s face on it.
Yo Han watches the large screen through his window. He walks out of his room.
Young Min passes out and the prison doctor says they should treat him first and then carry on the rest of the prison sentence.
Later that night, Ga-on asks Yo Han if he is satisfied now. He asks why Yo Han is being cruel. Yo Han says the entire nation wants this and this is democracy. Ga-on calls it hypocritical. He says Yo Han is doing this for fun.
He calls Yo han a cold-hearted monster who gets rid of anyone who comes in his way. Ga-on asks if the same goes for Issac too and if he killed him.
Yo Han who was silent all this time looks up. He grabs Ga-on’s neck and pushes him against the wall. He chokes Ga-on and asks him to repeat what he said. Ga-on asks if Yo Han killed his brother who treasured him a lot. Yo Han releases his hold on Ga-on who falls.
Yo Han yells asking if Ga-on knows what being cruel means. He goes on to narrate what happened on the day of the fire.
Flashback
Yo Han’s voiceover narrates that two months after Yo Han and Issac’s father’s death, Issac said he would donate all the assets to the Social Responsibility Foundation. He says the Foundation acted as if they were very grateful for the contribution. They had a party at the church
We see a montage of the sponsors clapping as the event is inaugurated.
Seo and the sponsors speak with Issac (Jin Young). Cha tells Elijah that her father is a saint.
Elijah runs away from them and goes to the gate. Yo Han is standing beside the gate. Elijah asks him to come inside. He says he will come in later and tells her to go to her dad. Elijah runs back inside.
The ceremony takes place and the sponsors can’t contain their excitement as the Foundation will become ten times richer now.
Issac’s wife wonders where Elijah is. Elijah runs in through one of the doors. Just then the priest smells smoke. He opens the door through which Elijah came in and he finds a fire blazing.
There is a commotion as people shove each other to get out of the church. The sponsors concentrate on getting their valuables and running out of the place.
Elijah can’t find her parents in the crowd.
Meanwhile, Yo Han is strolling outside the church. He hears the commotion and runs inside.
People push past him. Yo Han comes in to see Issac and his wife at the front looking for Eliah.
Eliah cries as she is seated in one pew. Cha falls against one of the pews and it, in turn, falls over Elijah’s leg pinning her under it. Cha, who had spoken sugar-coated words before, climbs on the very pew to getaway. She ignores Elijah’s cries as the pew digs deeper into Elijah’s legs.
Issac and his wife reach Elijah and carry her.
Heo pushes Yo Han to the side as he runs out. Cha also runs out of the church.
Yo Han jumps through the fire and runs towards Issac. Issac runs towards him but the flaming beam comes crashing over Issac and his wife. Issac shields Elijah from the impact.
Yo Han comes forward and takes Elijah in his hand. Issac tells Yo Han to go. Yo Han tells Issac that he will come back for him. As he walks a few steps, the ceiling caves down on him.
After the flames have died down and only ashen remains are there, a firefighter comes inside.
Yo Han opens his eyes and groans, “Issac”. The firefighter (the homeless man who fell to his death in the previous episode after Yo Han chased him) removes the watch from Issac’s hand and runs out instead of helping them.
Yo Han carries Elijah and comes out of the church totally zoned out. He sees a crowd of reporters who come running towards him as he is a survivor. He finds firetrucks and ambulances parked outside. All the sponsors who ran out are being treated in them.
He turns around and there is a severe injury on his back where the ceiling caved in. He bends forward towards Elijah who lays unconscious in his arms. He recalls Issac’s face right before his death and vengeance fills Yo Han’s eyes.
Epilogue
Yo Han removes his robe to reveal the scars shaped like a cross on his back from the injury. Ga-on apologises and says he was out of line.
After Ga-on goes away, Yo Han comments, “I knew it. People like stories like this.”
Image Courtesy -TVN
Review
This was another interesting episode.
Yo Han seems to be hinting at running for Presidency. He already has the people’s support.
K (Yo Han’s personal detective) seems to know about Yo Han’s outings at night. He seems to have a past with Yo Han and is loyal to him.
Ga-on seems more interested in Yo Han than his job. At times it seems like he is blind to the atrocities of the defendants. Yo Han does seem suspicious but Ga-on digging into Yo Han’s personal life makes one cut Yo Han a lot of slack. Jin-Joo who is extremely emotional seems more rational than Ga-on and Soo Hyun at this point.
Yo Han doesn’t seem to mind Ga-on snooping around. It is intriguing to see him allow Ga-on to ask him questions. I wonder if, in the name of an investigation, Ga-on and Soo Hyun are following the breadcrumbs Yo Han has dropped along their path. Yo Han for sure wants to gain Ga-on’s trust and it makes me curious to know why.
Minister Cha is an intriguing character. She promised her husband that she will sacrifice herself for her son and when the moment came she ended up sacrificing her son. It looked like she was fine with the jail sentence but she was shaken when Young Min’s sentence was flogging.
The last scene was a good watch as it was saddening but it set one’s mind thinking. The church fire scene had the base for a revenge story and it was totally believable. But the epilogue makes it seem like something else. I am curious to see which part of Yo Han’s story is not true as none of the sponsors seems genuine in the present.
Yo Han seems to be handing out punishments that are related to his life. He removed the watch from the homeless firefighter and walked away leaving him to die just as the firefighter had done back in the church (if that part was true).
Yo Han’s father used to flog him as a form of punishment and Yo Han sentenced Young Min with the same.
Sun-A turned out to be the real power behind the foundation. She holds all the power and yet she uses Seo as a front. She also has a lot of pent up anger. I wonder what her purpose is.
At this point, both Yo Han and Sun-A seem equally mysterious. I look forward to seeing Sun-A’s backstory in the upcoming episodes.
-By Soul Sword-
The Writers Room 
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