MOON LOVERS: SCARLET HEART RYEO 
It is hard to imagine why Taejo, after having realised Wang Mu’s
weaknesses and illness, persisted in making him his heir-apparent. How ironic
it is in hindsight that the great and unemotional king who wanted his kingdom to last forever should have made such an erroneous decision. When Wang Mu
ascended the throne, he ruled Goryeo as King Hyejong but only for slightly more than two years.
In second year of his reign, Hae Soo was promoted to be the Head
Court Lady, holding the highest position in the Damiwon Palace.
It was impossible to truly understand Wang Wook’s intentions
and motives when he freed Chae Ryung from his household so that she could start working as a
Court Lady in the Damiwon Palace.
The maid was curious about the gobbledegook that Hae Soo was
writing in her book. It was Korean, not Chinese words. Hae Soo urged her to
learn to read and write but Chae Ryung was adamant that she could not learn the Chinese language at her age.
Wang Wook had snaked his way to the top of the Goryeo power
hierarchy during King Hyejong’s reign. When he announced to all and sundry that
the king wanted a restructuring of the palace militia, the court officials
knew something was afoot. All the soldiers of powerful families would join
the palace army. They would take turns in providing support for the palace.
It was a royal order that had to be implemented immediately.
Wang So wondered whether it was one of Wang Wook’s nefarious schemes
to rob the various clans of their power. Questions must have gnawed at him. What
were the implications of such a scheme? Was Wang Wook trying to usurp power
for himself?
He suspected that Wang Wook was engaged in intrigue or
subterfuge of some kind when the Eighth Prince declared that King Hyejong’s deteriorating health had prevented him from attending the morning meetings.
Baek Ah and Woo Hee, his lady love, had been apart for some
time. One day while strolling in the woods, he came upon the princess of his
dreams who had returned to see him.
None had suspected that Chae Ryung was working hand in glove
with the scheming Wang Won, the Ninth Prince. Wang Won had surreptitiously
passed something to her to be inserted into King Hyejong’s bath. It probably
wasn’t the first time that he was delivering something by hand that had made
her nervous. It was learnt later that Wang Won, her former benefactor and
master, with whom she had fallen love, had handed her mercury.
When Chae Ryung arrived at the royal bathing pool, Hyejong was
soaking himself in the water. He complained that his recent baths had sapped
his strength and left him listless. When he woke up from his sleep, his
memory had been hazy and he wasn’t quite aware of the passing days.
Hae Soo informed him that the palace physician had diagnosed it as
a lack of sleep. Hae Soo’s naivety was shocking as she, the Head Court Lady responsible only to the king, had failed to
supervise Hyejong’s bath time closely. Instead, she had left Chae Ryung to
her own devices. The mercury, that the former maid had infused regularly into the bath water, had remained undetected. The king complained
that the bath water smelt too strong. Ignoring her twinge of conscience, Chae
Ryung explained that the herbal medicine had diluted. She continued to steep more tainted
herbs in the water.
Wang So and Baek Ah paid Hae Soo a visit on her birthday. The
Thirteenth Prince gave her a box of perfumes that he had bought from Byeongnando, the busy port near Songak. The gift, a product of Bulgaria, had been
brought over to Goryeo by a Persian merchant.
 
After having bonded during Taejo’s death, Wang So and Hae Soo’s
romance had taken wing.
Wang So observed her reaction suspiciously, eyeing her countenance
as she smilingly accepted the present from the Thirteenth Prince. Frissons of jealousy clutched his
heart. He was taken aback by her rare display of warmness towards Baek Ah. Hae
Soo loved the rose fragrance; she would have committed that special gift to memory for
one day she would have remembered it as the gift which probably should have been Wang
So’s present.
Baek Ah mentioned that Wang So had not been able to find a
perfect present for her although he had wandered around looking for one. But,
Wang So haughtily exclaimed that she should be grateful for his presence. He was the present. What more could a girl want?
Later that night, she heard some strange howling noises. She knew it was Wang So and
went out to meet him.
Wang So playfully stretched out his hand to offer to help her
down the short flight of stairs. This gesture melted her heart and would also be imprinted in her mind. It would be linked to his invitation to meet her at
the prayer tower with the intention of proposing marriage to her or saying
those three wonderful words. She would remember it in the future when she
arrived for her eventual wedding with Wang Jung at his residence.
The Fourth Prince invited her to go with him for an evening of surprises, his
birthday present for her. Lying on the ground, they studied the night skies. The couple spent a romantic night watching the skies and arguing
over the names of the stars.
Wang So’s eyes shone as he gazed lovingly at her. Whispering into her ears, he disclosed that he
had something important to tell her. Her heart must have fluttered. They
would meet at the doltap or prayer tower the next morning.
King Hyejong was in horrendous shape. Ravaged by his skin
ailment, he felt very cold despite the hot summer temperatures. He had
insomnia. Even when he could sleep, he had horrible nightmares. It wasn’t a
twist of fate but a vicious scheme working like a charm, which Wang Wook had turned
into his advantage. When he dropped in at Hyejong’s bed chambers, he wasn’t
there to console the king but make him sink deeper into misery and despair.
Wang Wook’s countenance was devoid of emotion when he declared
that he had caught wind of Hyejong-Choi Ji Mong’s scheme of circulating
rumours that he, King Hyejong, was the Son of the Dragon. The king’s severe
rashes were equated to the scales of the Dragon.
Then, with cold calculation, he pointed out that for everyone’s
sake, it was time for Hyejong to abdicate the throne in his favour. Was it
any comfort when the Eighth Prince promised to allow him to live in comfort
for the rest of his life?
In hindsight, the viewers would have realised that Hyejong’s
rashes were, in fact, the effects of mercury poisoning, evidence that he had
been poisoned by his half-brothers.
Terrified by the complicated palace conspiracies, King Hyejong,
was marrying off his young daughter, Princess Kyung Hwa, to the Khitans. He
was going to take his chances to protect himself from his diabolical enemies in his own kingdom. His rationale was the
Khitans would come to his rescue if his position was threatened. Hyejong’s
mental health had deteriorated. He was imagining things. ‘I’m sure I hear
horses coming!’
Wang So and Choi Ji Mong were mystified and shocked by the
king’s bizarre behaviour. None of what he was doing made any sense. The child
bride, dressed in red, stared beseechingly into her father’s unseeing eyes. Imagine a
young child being sent off as a bride to a strange and faraway barbaric kingdom, torn
away from the love of her parents.
The empathy that Wang So felt for the helpless and vulnerable princess
was instant. The Fourth Prince had been there before; he had flashbacks of his own
poignant experiences. His biased mother, Queen Yoo had insisted on sending him, instead of Wang Yo, his blood brother, as a hostage to Shinju.
 When he put up a resistance, the young Wang So was tied to the top of the parapet of the palace with archers ready to shoot at him. The horrible fear forced him to submit to his mother's will.
Princess Kyung Hwa, like him, was a transactional tool, the solution to her father’s problems.
Hyejong asked Wang So whether he would protect them. ‘Will you
marry the princess and protect us?’ Wang So was shocked by such a proposition
but being the feeling human that he was, he finally agreed to do it. It was a bleak
moment for him as he had planned to propose marriage to Hae Soo.
Hae Soo's anticipation was great. It was fuelled by Wang So’s
enigmatic invitation to meet at the prayer tower. Having understood what he
meant, she dressed up in her pretty clothes.
  Wang So was late. When he glimpsed his hair brooch resting alluringly in her hair, his mood brightened. But, he felt a trifle guilty. 
Hae Soo had expected him to say the three important words and also, propose to her.
He apologised to her and emphasized that he had forgotten what
he wanted to say to her. It was a blatant lie. She glowered at him for toying with her emotions.
Instead of setting a serious tone for what she expected to be a
marriage proposal, he was jovial and made a mockery of the situation. He insinuated that she had entertained high
hopes that their rendezvous would buy her some desired results. She wasn't amused.
 
Beaming with pleasure and delight in her blush, he suggested going
boating on the lake. Greatly disappointed that he had given her false hopes about the possibilty of a wedding, she gave him a stern glare. Was she
embarrassed and distressed because she had been infused with excitement at the impending
marriage proposal?
While in the boat, her face was downcast. Laughing gleefully, he
playfully rocked the boat from side to side to shake off her doldrums. He
was just like a naughty child; he drove her mad with his
knowing smiles. He had hoped that his cheerful laughter would dissipate the
tension in the air.
However, though the sun sparkled, there was a touch of coldness
around them. Hae Soo’s heart was breaking. Being humiliated, she showed no
response. She was not going to pretend an interest in his so-called fun
activity. Like the extraordinarily calm lake, she remained quiet but sullen.
Her annoyance could not be seen easily in the shadows as she was silhouetted against
the blazing sun.
The lake resembled an oasis of serenity; they were alone in their own quiet world.   
Finally looking up, she glared at him. Trailing his gaze on her beautiful face, he
asked, ‘Why are you staring at me?
He was stunned by her answer.
‘I was wondering about what
it must be like to turn away from something that you like’, she taunted him. ‘I was also thinking what a relief it
would be for you if you didn’t have to do that anymore!’
When he saw her faint, sad smile, he knew that he had failed her.
Later, while staring out into the night skies, Wang So disclosed his worries to Choi Ji Mong about his marriage to his niece. The astronomer agreed that it was a major decision to marry the young daughter of
King Hyejong.
Wang So argued that Queen Yoo and his Shinju foster family would
falsely believe that he would be in line for the Goryeo throne. He would
control all the other families and the attacks on Hyejong would reduce.
Choi Ji Mong praised Wang So for having shown extraordinary political foresight. His much-improved political savvy and strategic thinking resonated with the
astronomer.
However, Wang So couldn’t shake off the feeling that he was back to
square one. He resembled a dog on a leash again. He
was sick of turning away from the things he liked. His personal life had been torn apart.
The plotting and manipulation in the palace had heated up. Wang Wook reported to King Hyejong that Wang Gyu, a powerful man during Taejo’s reign, had made a fresh appeal against Wang So. Wang Gyu had earlier sided with Wang Mu in the fight for the throne. Exerting pressure on Hyejong, he had reminded the king that he had previously made two urgent appeals to the late King Taejo to drive Wang So out of the palace. It was learnt later that the overly ambitious Wang Gyu was motivated by his desire to put his grandson, Wang Eun, on the throne.
But, Hyejong turned the tables on Wang Wook by announcing that he was marrying his daughter to Wang So. As she was young and unable to start a family, she would be his second wife. What stunned Wang Wook was Hyejong had planned to abdicate in favour of Wang So. Wang Wook refused to lose the chance of offending Wang So’s sensibilities; he snidely commented that girls would die of heartbreak if he ever married.
Wang So had decided to come clean with Hae Soo about his impending marriage to his young niece. He wanted to confess to Hae Soo that he had broken her trust and hurt her. He couldn’t keep his promise to bring her away from the palace.
On the day of his wedding to his niece, Wang So sent Hae Soo an ambiguous letter written in Chinese calligraphy.
Hyejong was brimming with happiness but Wang So was grim looking. 
Baek Ah was the messenger boy for Wang So. Wang So’s message in
the form of a romantic Chinese poem was sent to Hae Soo to explain his
predicament. He had meant it when he wanted to leave the palace with Hae Soo
but the situation did not permit it. So, he had to retract his promise of
bringing her away from the palace.
Ha Soo was pleasantly surprised to discover that he was skilled in Chinese calligraphy. She had been mistaken that she knew everything about him. 
I came to sit by the water.
However, the clouds had come.
The verses in the romantic letter were
lifted fom Wang Wei’s poem, My Retreat At Mount Zhongnan.
MY RETREAT AT MOUNT ZHONGNAN
Wang Wei (A.D. 701 - 761)
My heart in middle age found the Way. And I came to dwell at the foot of this mountain. When the spirit moves, I wander alone Amid beauty that is all for me.... I will walk till the water checks my path, Then sit and watch the rising clouds -- And some day meet an old wood-cutter And talk and laugh and never return.
When visiting his mother, Wang Jung was shocked that his brother, Wang Yo, had returned from the dead. Wang Yo explained that he had to play dead since he had been labelled a traitor. Their uncle, Wang Shik Ryeom, had shielded him from his enemies.
Wang Yo recounted his fight with Wang So at the precipitous
cliff. When he jumped off the edge, he did not die. A divine hand had saved
him. It emerged that Wang So, although having the upper hand in the fight
with Wang Yo, did not have the heart to kill his older blood brother. It
showed that the wolfdog prince was not a beast but a compassionate prince
with a touch of humanity after all.
Wang Jung was opposed to another revolt against the king. Wang
Yo argued that the king had lost his mind; he was hallucinating and had
killed a court lady.
Wang Yo was back with a vengeance; he was determined to sit on
the throne. He was a beast who was ready to pounce.
The king had forbidden movement in and out of the palace at
night. Whoever disobeyed the rule had to be arrested.
Wang So, with his squad of palace guards, kept the palace under
constant surveillance. One night, they saw a figure, resembling Wang Jung, surreptitiously moving
about and they gave chase. He suddenly vanished into the thin air when they
reached the Damiwon Palace.
Wang So suspected that Wang Jung had slipped into Hae Soo’s room.
Hae Soo came out to confront them and she barred them from invading her
privacy. Proclaiming that she was the highest-ranked court lady of the Damiwon
who served the king directly, she declared that she would rather die than to
let any man in. To show that she meant business, she took out her hair pin
and pointed it at her throat. It was a test of wills. A cold knot of dread
crept over Wang So. When the Fourth Prince saw the bloody scratch on her
neck, he and his men quickly left the place.
Early the next morning, Wang So marched into the Damiwon. He
dragged Hae Soo out into the garden to dredge the truth out of her. The jealous prince wanted to know whether
Wang Jung was in her room the previous night. She, too, was indignant at his
deception and wanted to coax the truth out of him.
A romantic poem that she couldn’t understand would not do. A proper explanation from him was the least that she expected from him. 
He cocked his head at her. Why was he marrying his niece? He
confided that if he did not do it, the child would have been sent to Khitan
as a hostage. Was it true that he was ambitious for the throne? People
suspected his motives were less than noble but he was hurt by her lack of
trust in him. Wang So’s eyes bored holes into her heart.
Wang So had been beset with palace problems lately and the last thing he wanted to do was to go to war with her. But, the thought of Wang Jung hiding in her room the previous night drove him nuts. Was he in her room? Did something happen between them? Such concerns were quickly put to rest by Hae Soo. Hae Soo explained that the Fourteenth Prince had been practising martial arts and had forgotten the strict palace rules. She also confessed that she was terribly upset that he hadn't been truthful about his marriage to his niece. 
They promised each other that in the future they would tell each other the
truth no matter how awful the truth was. He revealed that the young princess was
sent to the Gaetaesa Temple.
Wang So asked Hae Soo whether Wang Jung was the person she
loved. He spotted merriment in her eyes when she shook her head. She
mentioned that he wanted to tell her something important on the boat ride but
he forgot. So, what was it?
He looked at her naughtily and then said, ‘I love you!’
Well, no cheeky words should be left unpunished. What surprised
him next was she reached out to plant a kiss lightly on his lips. Her eyes,
too, must have widened when he cupped her face, capturing her lips for a
passionate kiss.
  
Wang Wook was in for a surprise when Wang Won turned up with
Wang Yo. His heart must have somersaulted. He didn’t for a moment expect the
prince, whom he had betrayed in the previous palace revolt, would materialise
in his presence.
In a tone full of deliberate innuendo, Wang Yo cawed, ‘I heard that you got Wang Won to use
mercury regularly in the Damiwon. It is the smart ones who turn out to be
scary!’
Wang Won was part of Wang Wook’s clique. Wang Wook was
intelligent and was a strategist. He had placed Chae Ryung, the instrument of
death, there as his spy and helper. Wan Won regularly passed the mercury to the former maid. Being Hae Soo's assistant, Chae Ryung had the opportunity to carry
out Wang Wook’s evil plans to poison the king.
Well, well, well. Wasn’t the Third Prince playing the saint?
Who knows? He must have used mercury previously, if not lately, since he had
played dead. Wang Mu had been afflicted with his illness long before this. If
Wang Yo did not stop Wang Wook now, it just meant that he was a party to the
mercury conspiracy. Guilty by association.
Wang Won knew his place in the new pecking order. His tongue loosened
and he was instantly smooth and glib. The Ninth Prince made it clear to Wang
Wook that his loyalties were with Wang Yo. An ambitious, more powerful and
ruthless Third Prince had materialised in their presence. Who would he side
with? If the Eighth Prince did not side with Wang Yo, his death was a
foregone conclusion.
The ambitious Third Prince needed allies from powerful families
and he was politically savvy enough to understand that yesterday’s deadly enemies
could become today’s staunch political allies.
When Queen Hwangbo heard about the impending revolt, she was
distressed. Wang Wook had brought his mother and sister to his mansion in
order to avoid the onslaught in the palace. Once things had settled down, his
mother could return to the palace.
Yeon Hwa was indignant that Wang Wook was assisting Wang Yo.
Wang Wook was jealous of Wang So and didn’t want him on the throne. Wang So
would have everything if he took over the throne. Think: The winner takes it all. Wang
So would get the throne and the girl he loved, those very things that Wang
Wook felt he deserved. If Wang Wook could not have her then, neither could Wang So.
Queen Hwangbo was disappointed in him. She angrily chastised
him for the betrayal; she didn’t raise him to be a traitor.
The powerful Yoo militia headed by Wang Yo marched into the
Cheondeokjeon palace with little resistance. The attack was quick and unexpected.
 
The enemies within. Wang Yo’s second revolt against the throne
was successful as the enemies of King Hyejong were already in the palace.
This time, Wang Wook, did not lift a finger to defend the palace.
Wang Yo ordered his soldiers to ferret out the king. King
Hyejong, who was bathing in the royal pool in the Damiwon, was taken by surprise.
Having been systematically poisoned by his brothers, the king had vomited
blood. When Wang Yo suddenly pounced on him and pushed him off the edge of
the pool, all life drained out of him. The king had drowned.
 
Alas, Wang So, the hero of the piece, had arrived to trounce the
soldiers but it was too late. The astronomer, Choi Ji Mong, was also on hand to witness the demise of
the king at the hands of the Third Prince.
Wang So stood like a raging bull at the top of the staircase
but he would soon be brought to his knees. The sight of the floating corpse
of the king was staggering. With a ferocious bellow, he jumped on the militia
and he swept them off from his path. He battled them from the top of the stairs
to the pool.
The Damiwon Palace had turned into a battleground. The attack
on the palace had been well-orchestrated because of the enemies from within. It
was a bleak day for Wang So and Choi Ji Mong but the conclusion was chilling.
Wang Yo, the Third Prince, quickly distanced himself from
Hyejong’s death.
‘I didn’t kill him. He was
already dying from poison,’ Wang Yo claimed. It was hogwash, of course. Wang Yo implied
that someone had poisoned the king. Emboldened by the fact that he could use
Hae Soo to make Wang So submit to him, he argued that if he was implicated,
he also wanted to drag Hae Soo into the murder plot. He accused her of inserting mercury into the
king’s bath water. How did he know that there was mercury in the bath water unless
he had some prior knowledge about the conspiracy?
Wang Yo gave him two choices. Ominous warnings. Either he showed loyalty to the dead king and die with Hae Soo, or accept him, Wang Yo, as king and save Hae Soo. If he refused, Hae Soo would be accused of regicide. Wang So was neatly trapped by his older brother.
Wang So drew a ragged breath when Wang Yo slammed an insult
down his throat, ‘Wolves are known to
follow one female wolf until death. You’re just an animal, after all.’
Wang So’s eyes lanced into those of his brother; it was the unforgiving look of a ferocious wolf-dog. Wang Yo was perilously close to destroying all of them.  |