His movie “Alumnus”  (Commitment) will be released this November, so it becomes an obligation for TOP or Choi Seung Hyun to appear on magazines. For November magazine cover, he’s got double covers: for L’officiel Hommes and W magazine.

On those photos, TOP portrays his characters on “Alumnus” because he looks so mysterious and sexy. Besides showing off his charisma in black and white pictorial, on the interview for W magazine, he revealed his reason why he agreed to be involved on “Alumnus”. Since he was young he’s been adoring Robert Deniro’s acting on “Taxi Driver”, so he thought the character as Myun Hoon was a challenge  for him. Actually he managed to beat up that challenge. He won the “Asian Star Award” on BIFF.

Meanwhile, In L’officiel Hommes through “In My Room” concept that shows candid and natural poses,  he said he’s more serious with his acting career.

“Alumnus” will be officially released for theaters on November 6th.

[info and images sources: 1, 2]

For officially released on November 6th, “Alumnus” (동창생) or “Commitment” (international title) unveiled the posters. Although only showing the main character, Myung Hun (TOP/Choi Seung Hyun), the posters are full of tension and gloomy. On this thriller movie, TOP is sparing his acting skill alongside with Yoon Je Moon, Jo Sung Ha, Han Ye Ri, and Kim Yoo Jung.

Myung Hun (TOP) is the North Korean Spy. During his duty in South Korea he disguises as a senior high school student. When his beloved little sister (played by Kim Yoo Jung) in danger, he must save her while his secret is possibility uncovered, and threatened his life.

Due to the BIFF moment, before officially released, TOP will attend the event to promote this movie and will be held the fans meeting. Before the fans meeting, TOP alongside with Kim Yoo Jung will come on the Opening Ceremony on October 3rd evening. Meanwhile, the trailer of this movie is also scheduled will be screening during the event.

[info and image sources: 1, 2]

Looking at how they won’t continue with the battle that very night, Yeon Jung Ro heads of with his alternative plan which he already prepared beforehand with Moo Young and her people. He suggests General Yeon to go around Mount Chungyong if the General plans to attend the ceremony at the Gyemo Wall.

The ever wise and cautious Choong argues that the fastest is to go over the mount but Jung Ro replies by saying how people there are enemies for the General and they might trouble him. He says the other way to reach Gyemo Wall is go over Soltize in North East and how it’s better for the General’s convoy because the rebels there are already annihilated so basically it’s an empty abandoned area.

As soon as General Yeon leaves his place, Jung Ro discusses the situation with Moo Young. Moo Young is convinced that the General will take Jung Ro’s advice since he has no choice and for sure the General won’t divide his convoy into two force unit either. At the General’s place, they also discuss the situation, analyzing which road they should take, basically reviewing whether taking Jung Ro’s advice as a safe one or not. Choong however, suggests them to take Soltize route, but with the General in a coach instead taking the journey on an open carriage. Meanwhile, Moo Young and Jung Ro already set a plan to prepare an ambush and trap the General in Soltize.

The morning comes and the General procession with Choong as the leader ready to departure, while safe in a coach General Yeon sits calmly there. In the meantime, a spy reports to Moo Young’s army in an abandoned village near Soltize, that the General’s army is moving to that place. Not very long then Choong leads his convoy to the middle of the village, unaware with the enemy soldiers is eyeing them behind the closed doors and windows. Despite they look as if they unaware with the enemy presence, we can see Choong’s eagle eyes sharply gazes every spots he passes, calculating the situation.

As star-crossed lover of Choong’s, seems that Moo Young also has blessed with the same smart analyzing ability, thanks to his King Dad who raised her as warrior princess back then. She notices how the General’s personal guard is nowhere to be seen, but careless Jung Ro thinks it’s so much better to attack the General while his guard is missing. So Jung Ro rushes out from his hide out, forces Moo Young and the rest to come out too and they meet a bitter fact in front of their eyes.

It’s all a trap, a very big and huge trap. Choong has predicted how they’ll gonna be ambushed and he prepares a pleasant fight back for them. The night before the attack, the General visited General Yang and asked him blankly who is better live between General Yeon or Jung Ro for the sake of Goguryeo. It’s not a lovely choice, but even General Yang knows how great Yeon Gae Somun as a general so he chooses to join forces with the General and helps to set up the trap for Moo Young and Jung Ro’s army in Soltize.

Moo Young runs to the coach in the middle of the fight so wishing to take the General’s life by her own hand and scarily realizes how total the trap is, when she finds out it’s a poor soldier sits in there disguising General Yeon. She doesn’t lose hope anyway and runs again through the village, expecting to catch either the General or Choong there. Worry with the princess’ safety , Leader So instructs Boo Chi to guard her.

Choong spots Jung Ro among the soldiers in the battle field and he takes off from his horse, ready to hunt him. He exhales deeply, expressing his hate of the idea of killing people. But this is war, and he’s a warrior so he yields his sword and kills anyone who stands in front of him. Jung Ro tries to escape from the battle field, though right in a corner Choong just appears and slaughters all his guards.

In the palace, Jang meets two closest allies of General Yeon’s and tries to buy their loyalties by offering one of them the chancellor’s position, and the other one as the head of the intelligence agency equals with the chancellor’s rank.

Somewhere safe, General Yeon and his procession continues their journey when they receive a message. Jung Ro falls into Choong’s trap, and now the General commands his troop to turn back because he wants to see end of the traitor.

Deep in the battlefield, a painful scene happens. The two lovers fight each other to death, swinging their swords with all their might, so willing to kill. With a mask Moo Young uses to cover her face, all Choong knows is that he fights a rebel. In the other hand, Moo Young is a bit hesitant to attack him because she sees how Choong slides the hairpin she gave him into his hair.

It’s a statement of love, even in her hatred she recognizes it so she faces Choong half-hearted. Too sad that her hesitation pays a cost because during their fight Choong stabs Young Hae, the female warrior from the Geumhwadan who tries to help her. That stab wakes Moo Young up, and she stabs Choong back.

Moo Young continues attacking Choong who now is weak with the fresh stabbing wound. He’s cornered and closes his eyes to accept his death when masked Moo Young yielding her sword high, prepares to kill him. However glimpses of their love in the past time crosses in Moo Young’s mind, makes her oblivious with General Yeon’s guard comes up behind her and slices her back. She falls to the ground right in front of Choong who completely unaware that the dying female warrior he just fought with, is the woman he loves and tries to protect with all his might.

General Yeon’s guard is just about to finish Moo Young’s life when another Geumhwadan member shows up and protects her. He fails, and together with Young Hae get killed at the spot. Leader So and Boo Chi arrive at the same time and immediately the leader commands Boo Chi to get the princess and takes her away from the battle field and instead brings her to the umbrella maker in Jolbon.

Boo Chi at first refuses to leave him, but Leader So catches a bad sight, General’s men got Jung Ro. Aware that Jung Ro might leak important information about them, Leader So has his decision sets.

Kneeling in front of the General, Jung Ro begs him to save his life by trading it with the information he has about the rebel he works with. Jung Ro just about to start by revealing that they are essentially the remaining forces from the former king but when he wants to tell that one of the leader is actually one of the king’s descendants, an arrow flies and kills him right away. Choong immediately takes his stand in front of his father and his decision is correct.

Another arrow flies and now stabs Choong’s shoulder, more arrows come and the General is furious with the possibility that someone is so dare to kill him openly like that. His men are pretty capable though, because in a minute they come up to the roof and have their swords on the neck of Leader So, the arrow shooter. It’s when Leader So is brought to the General, Choong recognizes him at once as one of the royal family protector.

At the umbrella maker’s place in Jolbon, they care for the princess wound. Moo Young still insists on her revenge, but the umbrella maker reminds her how so many people already died just for her personal revenge. Choong visits Leader So in the prison, asking about who is behind him but he gives Choong no answer. After the visit General Yeon meets his son, he concerns with his health and he also wants to ask about whether Choong can gain any info from the prisoner. Choong tells him they won’t get any answer from him and that from now on he’ll be the one taking care of Leader So in prison.

Choong nonetheless reminds his father that there still be more rebels like Jung Ro out there and how they need to be put under surveillance. He suggests to put all the General’s enemies under surveillance since then, his father smiles proudly listening to his son’s smart idea. When General Yeon’s allies meet him that night, the General asks them about their meeting with the king. In the palace, Jang gets disappointed when he hears how the General survives from Jung Ro’s attack and that because the help from General Yang.

Later General Yeon pays a visit to King Jang, he confronts the king about the former king’s ashes stealing. According to the General, anyone who still concerns with the former king in any form is considered as a rebel. The accusation pretty much locks the king’s mouth because indirectly General Yeon accuses him as a rebel and deserves to be punished.

In the assembly the next morning, Minister Ohn Sa Mun announces how they about to establish a new office to deal with state external and internal affair. All forces are going to be united in this office to centralize power. The new office will be called Prime Minister, with General Yeon Gae Somun as the sole candidate for the post. *So in my summaries before this I use Prime Minister wrongly for the supposed word Chancellor. The Prime Minister post in Goguryeo then actually just applies during Yeon’s governance. So sorry for the mistake.

General Yeon then becomes the Prime Minister of Goguryeo and he announces how the prime minister will be in charge in all military affairs, selection of chairs, and all other state affairs. An emergency state defense is proposed, which causes all private armies owned by the nobles to be put under the prime minister’s command as Goguryeo army. Basically now all armies in Goguryeo are under General Yeon’s solely command. King Jang tries to argues this army monopoly but all ministers are too afraid to speak their mind against General Yeon.

General Yeon puts Minister Ohn Sa Mun as the chancellor, General Yang Jin Wook remains as the Chief Secretary. Angry because his authority is stepped over, Jang reminds the General that chancellor seat needs to be elected, not appointed. But his protest goes to empty air when the General reminds the king that as the prime minister the General has the authority to select all the officials.

As the eldest son of the Yeon Family, Choong will be given office as the Steward and later act as the director of the fortification of the Cheonri Wall. The General then continues with his announcement to build an intelligence agency which will monitor Goguryeo externally and internally. The agency will later be called as Joye Agency, and under  his direct command.  So essentially all military and state affairs fall under prime minister jurisdiction, leaves the king as merely puppet sitting on the throne with no authorities whatsoever.

Few years passes, and now Moo Young resurrects with her disguising as a young hunter guy who regularly sells his hunted animals to the market. Later at the umbrella maker’s place, with Boo Chi they discuss on how now the Joye Agency recruits new agents and thinking it’s time finally for Moo Young to sneak in to the palace as one of the recruited agent. They know they can’t defeat the General using strength and decides to use his own intelligence agency to outsmart him. They plan to get the list of all warlords who stand on the other side from the General’s, so later when they fight him they will have a decent back up from those warlords.

In the market, the eldest legitimate son of the Yeon Family, Yeon Nam Saeng strolls away enjoying himself. In a planned action, Boo Chi steals his pocket money and Moo Young pretends to catch him and get the pocket money back. Moo Young returns the money to Yeon Nam Saeng and acting all ignorant, knows very well it intrigues more for Nam Saeng. Their plan works, now they get Nam Saeng’s attention.

At the palace gate, Choong and the General going back home from a long war. Years pass by, and now Choong looks way more guarded, jaded, cold and seasoned, pretty much worth to be called as General Yeon’s eldest son.

The boring King Jang disguises himself as one of servant and serves tea to the nobels, he’s getting crazier by the time gone, all stressed out. In the meeting the prime minister is called for the prolong war which causes people to suffer but he refuses to accept that as his failure. However, as the man of honest and truth, Choong openly says that there’s a price for the prime minister to pay for the failure, causing everyone to raise their eyebrows. No one dares to oppose the prime minister before that. Choong says the Joye Agency failed to provide the information needed in the war which resulting in very long war and suffer the people. He ends with how the prime minister and Joye Agency should responsible for those causes.

Everyone agrees that the Joye Agency director should be dismiss from the post and King Jang proposes Choong as the new intelligence agency director. Yet, because he annoyed with how Choong dares to point him with his incompetence, Prime Minister Yeon chooses to put Nam Saeng as the director and Choong only as the deputy director. Choong simply sighs, and says nothing when his father angrily glaring at him.

Outside the throne room, General Yeon asks Choong why he holds his father as the responsible one for the war. He says because of Choong’s honesty his authority fell to the ground but Choong remains unshaken saying that he only speaks his mind. Though the General naturally mad with Choong’s plain honesty, he smiles proudly. That his son dares to speak the truth and the right instead of dumbly obeying anything he says.

The next morning Moo Young stands in line for the recruiting of the Joye Agency new agents, and smartly avoid any further conversation about him. At home she already rehearses any info she needs to play her role as the son of Lord Daeja by remembering all facts she gathers about him with Boo Chi and the umbrella maker. Everything goes smoothly for her until Choong appears at the agency.

Before Choong steps into the registration room he’s welcomed with flowers given by Mo Seol, a daughter from one of General Yeon’s allies. It seems that Mo Seol likes him though Choong blatantly ignores her teases.

Then Choong heads to the room where Moo Young is in, and at the time he shares the same air Moo Young breathes, he senses her. He turns around, and his eyes widened looking at a dead ringer of his long gone lover.

Choong freezes at first and after he gains his consciousness, he immediately asks for the new recruitment  identity. He checks Moo Young’s administrative letters, tosses them away and like a tense male animal smelling the scent of his female mate, he circles her. He’s so bothered with the striking similarity of this petite soldier with the deceased Princess So Hee, he even draws his sword and put it on Moo Young’s neck.

Choong demands her to tell him who she really is, until Yeon Nam Saeng pops out into the room and coolly wraps his arms around Moo Young’s shoulders. Nam Saeng tells his agitated brother that the new guy is his friend. A statement Choong just can’t accept so easy.

Cr to Nate

The happy couple invited over 900 guests to their wedding. As super star couple, of course many of their guests are also superstars! Named it Jang Dong Gun-Go So Yeong couple, Yeon Jeong Hoon-Han Ga In couple, Jeong Joon Ho-Lee Ha Jeong couple, Kwon Sang Woo-Son Tae Yeong couple, Song Seung Heon, Kim Tae Hee, and others. Well, I think this is one of the rare non-award-events where almost all Korean superstars are gathered together in one place.

Look how Kwong Sang Woo had made a joke before the photo session. This picture is adorable…all superstars in one frame! Even a very high budget movie can’t beat it.

Before the wedding, Lee Byung Hun made time to greet his fans (around 500 women) who were waiting outside. Many of them are from Japan! So he personally greeted and thanked them for all the way coming from Japan to congratulate him and Lee Min Jeong. Ooohh, he’s so nice .

The happy bride and groom look gorgeous! Congratulation for them.

[1, 2, 3]

The Geumhwadan now are sure that the princess in the city and begin to search for her. It seems that the umbrellas Moo Young paints becomes a new trend that every sellers talk about it, Choong stumbles in his way out from an inn when he hears hos someone says that he thinks the people sell the painted umbrellas seemed to come from Pyongyang, the capital city. He then remembers, how he catches a glimpse of a girl who looks like similar to his Moo Young. Pretty certain that it can be her, Choong goes back to the market place again.

Shi Woo and Boo Chi find the saviour’s daughter, and Shi-woo manages to convince the little girl that they are from the same side after he shows her a tattoo of the bamboo flower on his chest, just the exact similar pattern with the ones Moo Young paint on her umbrellas.
Boo Chi goes to tell the others that they’ve found the princess but Shi Woo sees Choong goes to an umbrella seller and asks for the address of the real umbrella makers. Choong knows that both Shi Woo and his dad’s guard are following him, but right now he’s just too focus on finding Moo Young he hardly care for others. Shi Woo however is the one who spots Moo Young while she goes hunting for Choong.

Shi Woo grabs Moo Young before either Choong or General Yeon’s guard see her and when Moo Young furiously says that she can’t let the traitor’s son/Choong go, he tells her it’s dangerous to kill him there in the crowd. He brings the princess to the Geumhwadan fort where they bow and offer their apologies for being unable to protect her family. She’s so terribly angry and deep in sorrow:

“I saw my father and brother’s bodies burn. The people spat at my father, the king of Goguryeo, and mocked him. For the past twenty-four years, the people lived in peace under my father’s rule… Yet they called my father, the king of Goguryeo, a traitor who tried to sell off his country.”  She vows that before she kills General Yeon, his brother’s killer and Choong, with her own hands, she’ll never be able to close her eyes, even if she dies.

Choong innocently follows directions to the umbrella maker as he’s told but of course he’s heading to the Geumhwadan fort as well. Everyone gets their adrenaline rushed especially Moo Young who wants nothing but to kill him, but Leader So convinces her that now they can’t do anything or their hide out can be revealed and known by General’s side.

The General’s guard find the same hide out but all he finds are the Moo Young saviour and his daughter. He puts his sword to the little girl as he shows a portrait of the princess to ask about her. The man lies and says that the girl in the portrait is dead. Refuse to just believe his story, the guard now aims his sword to the father’s neck, threatens his daughter to tell the truth. She bravely keeps their lie by crying, “Unni… Unni died.”

Choong comes from behind and gets angry when he sees the guard threatens a little girl like that and attack him from behind. However when he hears as the guard asks about what they did with the princess’ remains, Choong begins to shake. Just after the guard leaves to seek for the grave of the remains, Choong approaches the father and the daughter with trembling hands holding the same picture of the princess, “Please take a good look. Was it really her?”

Choong shocked but still somehow refuses to believe until he notices how the daughter of the man wears the hairpin Moo Young gave him once. The hairpin he slipped into Moo Young’s hand to tell her that he’s alive back then. The realization of how she’s really dead hits him hard, breaks him down into pieces. In a flashback we can see how it’s all planned to make everybody believes the princess is dead. Someone else’s remains got digging and puts into a supposed Moo Young’s gravesite, she herself hands the hairpin to the little girl, very much aware that it can trick Choong.

Zombie Choong wanders down the streets until he goes to Moo Young’s grave and immediately attacks the General’s guard when he sees him there as well, “Did my father tell you to do this?! He ordered you to use me to kill the princess?! Is that why he let me go?! Is it?!”
Choong holds the clothes Moo Young wears in her last time to his chest while he lets out scream after scream of deep devastated grief. After a while he sobers up and deeply thinks, “It’s all my fault. I couldn’t protect you. It’s all my fault for being powerless.”

The Geumhwadan and Moo Young now assure that they succeeded in tricking everybody that the princess is dead. Moo Young says, “Princess So-hee is dead. From now on, I no longer exist in this world, not in the day or at night. I won’t even have a shadow. From now on, I am Moo Young.” Then she leaves with the Geumhwadan after gives her farewell to her saviours, the umbrella makers.

The guard reports the princess’ death to General Yeon, when Choong shows up. After a while we see Choong kneeling outside the house all night long. Then Jang’s first minister meeting turns into a debate with General Yeon’s people about the asking tax to the citizens to support the strengthening of The Wall. Jang doesn’t want to burden his people with more tax while the General believes they need to do what it takes to build stronger wall.

In a practice room while Jang practicing his swordsmanship, General Yeon tells Jang that the princess is dead, a news that makes Jang seems to regret anything that happens after the rebellion. Anyhow General Yeon’s people wonder why he volunteer to go to the wall until he explains that he’s going to destroy any rebellion acts toward him in the rural areas.

When he comes home at night he finds Choong still kneeling in the same spot since yesterday. He then asks his son, “Why did you come back?” Choong firstly addresses him as “father,” but General Yeon stops him from using that word since he gave up his family ties with his father. Choong ignore that and continues by saying that he’ll walk his father’s path, even though he had previously called his father’s actions shameful.
“I realized that being powerless is even more shameful,” Choong declares. “I will stand with those who have power, and I will become a man with power.” General Yeon then asks him if that means he’ll support his dad now.

Cynically, Choong says whether having a purpose holds any importance. Whether it’s treason or deception, “I will not hold anything back in order to gain power. In order to protect what is mine, I will throw away duty and all else that remains.” He further says that he’ll use his father as a stepping stone to gain more power if he has to.  General Yeon turns his body but then tells his son that he’ll accept him if he acts as his bodyguard when he goes to the wall. His safety is now Choong’s responsibility. The next morning Choong prepares for his journey by wearing new dark colored clothes and tied his hair into a bun with Moo Young’s hairpin. His old friend Jin Gu sees him off in an impressive convoy to the wall and worries on how much Choong have changed.

In Jolbon, Yeon Jung Mo, the brother of the killed prime minister, wants General Yang to help him taking revenge on General Yeon. Nonetheless, the General refuses saying that revenge will only bring more bloodshed. The Geumhwadan hear this which then makes them and Moo Young wonder to persuade Yeon Jung Mo or General Yang to join forces and have revenge for General Yeon.

They decide to persuade Yeon Jung Mo and sneak into his house to send message, which he misunderstood as a threat from General Yeon. Furious with the possibility he plans to go against the General and his soldiers when he comes to their town later. To be able to fight such a great general and his big army Yeon Jung Mo will need extra assassins, to which exactly the role the Geumhwadan playing.
As the new chief commander of the General’s guard, Choong takes action by instructing a detail order to constantly observe Yeon Jung Mo movements. Leader So catches his sight in the market doing his job and notices his hairpin, which he remembers seeing Moo Young gave it to the little girl. Sadly, Moo Young still thinks that Choong betrays her.

Geumhwadan’s plan to let Yeon Jung Mo hire them as assassins has worked, but when then they worry that he can recognize the princess’ face, Moo Young has an idea. The Geumhwadan finally shows up to Yeon Jung Mo’s house and he agrees to hire them while he’s still unconvinced with the female members of the assassins group. He tests them then by drawing a sword onto Moo Young’s neck. Without wasting time she explains him who she is. At the same time, General Yeon and his men come to Yeon Jung Mo’s house too.

Inside the house Moo Young tries to persuade Yeon Jung Mo to join forces with him in order to take revenge on General Yeon. Their meeting though is interrupted by the coming of General Yeon and his men, and Yeon Jung Mo has to let them in or they can get suspicious why it takes so long for them to open the door.

The Geumhwadan and Moo Young hides while Yeon Jung Mo meets General Yeon, and Boo Chi climbs the rooftop to check the situation outside. General Yeon asks Yeon Jung Mo blankly, “I heard you want to kill me.” He then promised Yeon Jung Mo the seat of prime minister position something the latter guy agrees, but back in the room where the Geumhwadan and Moo Young hide, they all now are ready to draw their swords. A nervous servant comes in to announce that the tea is ready, and Choong has this sense of feeling something isn’t right. He tells his father that they shouldn’t stay, an advice the General agrees upon.

As General Yeon starts to leave the house, everyone grabs their swords. Choong looks particularly uneasy and behind the wall Moo Young swears: “Father. Today, at last, the traitors will be punished.”

Cr to Naver and The Blade And Petal Soompi Forum

Without wasting any time Choong strides behind his father and puts a sword to his neck, what he wants from that action is clear. He wants to give enough time for Moo Young and whoever helps her to run away from the killing zone. General Yeon strangely orders his men to step back, which allows for all the Geumhwadan members left in the throne room to escape as well. Choong keeps his father hostage as he slowly starts backing out of the room, with all the soldiers following closely behind and his sword kept on Dad’s throat.

Shi Woo, the princess and Leader So which seems to be also actually Shi Woo’s dad, get surrounded by more soldiers outside and not able to leave the palace yet. Another Geumhwadan member comes riding a horse and immediately jumps off and help with the fight, so Shi Woo use the horse to get the princess out of that doomed place. The Geumhwadan keeps trying to fight off the soldiers to give them more time when General Yeon approaches the site, still as Choong’s hostage. The General insists his men to lower their swords and when everybody draws them back and leaves the duo Dad-Son alone at the gate, he smirks and tells his son, “That’s enough. I gave you the time that you wanted.” Choong lowers his sword, defeated.

General Yeon returns to the throne room and addresses Jang as the king. Jang finally reaches the throne and now all men from General Yeon’s side address Jang as the king as well. Way deep in the forest Shi Woo and the princess ride their horse full speed, with General Yeon’s guard chase them from behind. Not very far from them, Choong is on his horse too. Shi Woo then tries to cover their track by continuing their escapade on foot and succeeded to fool the General’s guard, however Choong knows his trick and he now follows on foot just like them too.

All the time during their effort to escape, Moo Young just getting numb from terror and shock she suffers for seeing her dad and little brother get killed before her own eyes then she snaps out from her zombie state and demands to go back to the palace, to kill all the rebels. Lucky that Shi Woo then able to put her some realization and they’re back to track of trying to save their own lives. It’s just that the General’s guard now corner them on an edge of a cliff, forcing the two fugitives to fight him. Shi Woo gets injured and in a very dangerous blow his sword is grabbed by Moo Young, she fights the guard herself.

Choong spots them and runs to approach, but it’s the time when he sees Moo Young loses her steps and slips to the edge of the cliff. In front of his eyes, Moo Young falls off the edge. His dad’s guard can only watch when Choong sheds his body armour and jumps over the cliff to save her. Too bad he can’t find her though he desperately screams her name again and again, as he keeps looking. Meanwhile Shi Woo only able to find one of Moo Young’s boots but he has to hide again because now General’s soldiers are sent to find the princess’ body too.

His people then report to General Yeon that they can’t find the princess. He then heads to the home of the recently-killed prime minister to instruct his surviving son to kill himself so he can wash away his father’s disgrace. At last, the General kills the whole family. Next he heads to General Yang to kill him too but then he decides not to kill him. He just asks General Yang to return to his hometown and watches all his moves closely.

Choong can’t find the princess and exhausted to death, he has no idea that she is saved by a man with his daughter and they bring her to their home. She finally wakes, and as soon as she gains her consciousness she wants to go back to the palace to take revenge on her father. The man who saves her persuades her not to be rushed with such thought, he tells her that he used to be a Geumhwadan too and he knows she is Princess So Hee.

Back in the city, the body of the crown prince and the king are displayed to public. Their bodies are tied to a pole, ready to be burnt. Choong sees that and he painfully looks at the prince and the king’s bodies. Disgusted and raging in anger, Choong stares at his father. However he leaves the scene just a few minutes before Moo Young and her saviour join the crowd to have one last look to her father and brother.
Moo Young is so shocked and sad that she has to see her dad and brother treated that way, especially when lies about the former king are announced publicly (so it’s expected that people will just believe the lies and accept the death of the king and the crown prince as punishment from public, instead of being betrayed by his Generals and the royal nephew).

Moo Young hysterically wants to reach the stage to her beloved family and her saviour has to work his hardest to hold her. It’s fatal if her presence spotted by General Yeon or his people. Before her eyes, Moo Young sees how the king and the prince’s body burnt down in public as enemy of the state.

Jang watches the smoke rise up in his new kingly robes, while General Yeon waits till he’s the last one left in the burning site. Choong watches him from a distance, “I will never forgive you, Father.”

Choong then meets his father, and asks him blankly if he’s even human. His father mocks him—his being human can’t help him protecting his princess. “The reason you could not protect the princess is because you lacked power,” says his dad. The General believes his action is for the good of the country. He did what he had to protect what he needed to.

Still Choong replies how his father lying about the king’s crimes to fool people. The General asks him again whether he wants to become a member of the Yeon family, or just die.  Choong tells him: “I’d rather die than remain as a shameful descendant of the Yeon family.”
It’s strange that his father doesn’t kill him instantly, simply because only Yeon family get the honor of dying in his house. He then says that they are now no longer father and son, and have no ties to each other. The General’s guard wonders why he lets Choong leave, but he tells the guard how he thinks Choong will be the first person finding the princess and asks him to follow his son.

Moo Young’s saviour tells her the emergency Geumhwadan fort in the former capital, Jolbon. In the meantime, someone steals the remains of the king and crown prince after giving drugs to the guards’ drinks. The Geumhwadan sees this maybe because they want to get the remains as well. But they don’t know who took them, when they report this to their leader he says that they have to find the princess before General Yeon does. They think they better go to their emergency fort hoping that Moo Young will find them.

Jang was actually the one who instructs the stealing of the remains, and asks it to be given to him secretly. Suddenly he hears the king’s voice in his head and in shock he drops the ashes to the floor. He insists that he does the right thing and screams into the empty throne room: “I am the king of Goguryeo! I am! Soon, even General Yeon will kneel before me. I will definitely become a great king in history. I will! I will!”

Jang then is coroneted as the official king, and as if he wants to remind the General about who is the real ruler now he says how safe he feels to have such a loyal person as General Yeon with him.

Moo Young and her saviour then head to Jolbon, under disguises as umbrella sellers. On their way of selling their umbrellas, Moo Young breaks down when she sees a street performance done by a man throwing his knives at a straw dressed as the deceased king, she chokes with tears as people cursing on the straw doll, calling names to her father. Just a few moments later, Choong passes by the exact same show, not knowing she is just around the corner.

At the home of her saviour Moo Young helps them to make umbrellas, she paints them with bamboo flower design inspired by her memory with her father, where he asked her to see a painting and decided which she thought was stronger—the sword or the flower?
At that time she hesitantly told him that she thought the sword would be the stronger one, “But the flower can bloom again after being cut,” the king said. “The sword is not to be used to cut the flower, but to protect the flower.”

The king continued their concersation by explaining about Geumhwadan, a secret organization formed to protect the royal family and the people in times of revolution and war. That’s why now Moo Young paints the Geumhwadan pattern, as a secret signal for her to call the protector of the royal family.

Choong checks the market place in Jolbon hoping to spot his princess among the crowd without luck. He sees though, when General Yang heads to his home in a chariot, Jolbon is also actually General Yang’s hometown. Bad luck seems to follow Choong he and Moo Young unknowingly pass each other in the market. However, Moo Young spots General Yeon’s guard in the crowd and instantly feels the urge to take her revenge. Meanwhile, the Geumhwadan recognizes the pattern on the umbrellas people use and guesses correctly that the princess is still alive and now calling them all.

Moo Young is back to the market now armed with bow and arrows, she’s going hunting. The prey will be her brother’s killer. Once she locks her target, she prepares her bow to shoot only to get a sight of Choong a few meters behind his first target. Trembling with rage and tension, she pulls back the arrow and aims the weapon to … Choong. It’s him that she wants to kill now.

Cr to Naver and The Blade And Petal KBS Official Site

As you can see there, KWave Magazine is published by KBS World. And if I’m not mistaken this magazine is for free. I think I grabbed one a couple months ago while picking up a friend from her Korean class.

If you think the previous three pictures are too serious and intense, the last one breaks the ice. And it’s my favorite. Lee Seung Gi looks the best when he’s smiling .

After wrapping up his latest drama with Suzy, “The Gu Family Book,” Seung Gi’s activity is mostly about tour and photo-shoots. Just few weeks ago Blossom posted Seung Gi’s appearance on Esquire. I think Lee Seung Gi has been trying to “upgrade” his image from the sweet and nice young guy to a more mature one. He started with “The King 2 Hearts” and I think slowly but consistently he’s been trying to move his image “forward.” Well, in my opinion, the thing with Lee Seung Gi is his sweet and nice guy image is not something he really has to make an effort about, but it’s on his gene and its embedded naturally on his face! If you get what I mean.   So the consequence for him is that he HAS to make an effort to “upgrade” his image. Well, Seung Gi is just naturally a nice guy, so basically whatever “upgrade” image he’s been trying to achieve, the fans will always love him as he is.

[Daum 1, 2, 3, 4]

King asks the senior royal guard if they have thoroughly check every single places in the palace and the palace guard says that the only place that hasn’t yet been searched is the princess quarter. The information scares the king, worried that the impersonator is there and he can harm her. Anxiously the king marches to Moo Young’s quarter, wants to make sure she’s alright.

Which of course, she is. And not. Tearfully she asks the man who’s standing in front of her, “Is it truly you? What happened? How… did you survive?” Knowing how she feels, Choong explains how he so wanted to meet her as soon as he regained consciousness but he also recognizes how dangerous it can be if other people spots them both together. Despite the danger he still has to get into the palace if he wants to stop his father’s plot and protect the princess he loves.

Choong then asks about what happened to the ceremony after his interruption at the north wall, and Moo Young cries as she explains how the prince fell off the horse which led to the ceremony cancellation. Sadly, she tells Choong that her beloved dongsaeng may never walk again. Choong embraces her with a warm hug as a comfort to sooth her pain and sadness while the king and Jang are just closer to reach Moo Young’s quarter. He holds her even tighter when Moo Young miserably states that now the Yeon family and the royal family definitely can never be together.

When the king’s arrival is announced, they both look panic because for sure the king mustn’t know that Choong is still alive. The king at first looks relieved when he sees how Moo Young is just fine, but because of her nervousness with Choong hides in the same exact room, it somehow intrigues the king as he walks further into his daughter’s room ready to inspect every corner there.

Luckily Moo Young able to distract her dad attention by asking the right question at the right time. His answer: to kill General Yeon tomorrow and end all this conflict at once. As the king leaves the room Moo Young lifts her sword and approaches Choong, “Since you know what my father is thinking, I can’t let you go. Be on my side, or else I’ll have to kill you now. That is my destiny and my choice.”

Choong doesn’t move an inch or raises his eyebrow seeing the woman he loves holds her sword to him now. He understands that before meeting him she’s a princess. Her country is her family, and every burden that comes with is a consequent the princess embraces wholeheartedly. He asks her to kill him instead, because he simply can’t choose either side, “Please kill me now, as my destiny has deserted me. Ever since I met you, Your Highness, you became the whole world to me.”

Moo Young breaks my heart when she tells Choong they should have never met, or that she should have never asked him to stay. She then wields her sword to his neck, “Consider this the end of our relationship.” It hurts them both, but there’s nothing they can do.
The king informs Jang that they must prepare a new heir in case the crown prince isn’t able to walk again, and asks him who he thinks fits to that position. It’s as if the king hinting that Jang is the chosen one, but of course Jang tells the king that they shouldn’t give up on the crown prince. Jang worries though that he loses his chances of becoming heir if the king finds out he saved Choong’s live.

Jang returns into Moo Young’s quarters where he knew exactly Choong is still there and draws a sword against him: “I can’t spare your life again,” without knowing Moo Young is there too behind the curtain. The very stunned Moo Young comes out and interrogate Jang why he saved Choong, he lies that he did it because Choong saved her and the prince and he felt pity for him. Jang adds that he also wants to prevent a civil war between General Yeon and the king, and because he knew the meaning of  Choong for her.

The king introduces the Geumhwadan to Jang, who then explain their plan to capture General Yeon and his followers during the upcoming military parade. All they need  to do is waiting until they’re all gathered in the palace again with all their armies while the king soldiers and personal army are ready to trap them there.

The king plans for a council meeting tomorrow to announce a new heir to the throne, because it seems that he can’t hope for the prince again. With all the ambiguous conversation the king shares with Jang, it’s understandable if Jang secretly hope that it’ll be him
In the meantime, Geumhwadan will keep an eye on General Yeon’s residence while the army is called in to secure the city, not to mention the king’s personal army which will be arriving in secret that night. And as a huge surprise to everyone in the room, the king states that he’s gonna meeting General Yeon tonight.

General Yeon tasks his guard to find Choong, since there’s no way he run away out of the palace yet. He then finds out that the prince is severely injured from falling off a horse, since it’s possible that the palace know the horse is poisoned. From this situation it’s natural that his followers suggest him to attack the king immediately, but General Yeon informs them with the news of the crown prince and the upcoming heir selection. It’s obvious that the king will choose Jang, which probably good for the General because he has maintain such a relationship with him. Plus, he believes that Jang would be a good king.

The king really visit General Yeon’s resident that night, so General Yeon comes out to meet him. The king tells him about the crown prince’s fall and asks for his support in establishing a new heir to the throne, however he doesn’t mention any names to General Yeon. Later it shows that Jang is actually at General Yeon’s home too when the king and the General meet. The General guesses that Jang wants him to support him, but in fact Jang says that Choong is still in the palace and is his hostage. He then agrees to get Choong out of the palace but reminds the General that he now saves his son twice.

When night comes, both Jang and Moo Young work together to get Choong out of the palace safely. Choong disguises as the princess’s chariot driver and when a guard insists that she can’t leave, Jang says he’ll be responsible for that. Moo Young brings Choong out of the palace gate and bids her goodbye to Choong. She makes him promise to leave the capital since there’s no way his father will forgive him for what he did.

She takes off the bracelet she always wears with her all the time and gives it to Choong as a reminder of her then asks him to go to Jolbon, “I promise you that I’ll come find you later,” she says. “Please stay alive.” Choong stares so brokenheartedly at the bracelet while Moo Young rides away with her chariot until he decides to chase after her. In the meantime, Moo Young can’t hold herself any longer and stops her chariot too. When she gets off she finds out Choong is just few meters behind her, he too can’t let her go. They run to each other, and Choong steps forward to hold her tight. As she finally really leaves, Choong looks so shattered with Moo Young’s bracelet in his hand and while he’s not aware with his surroundings, somebody attacks him. It’s his father’s man.

In the minister meeting the next day the king announces the new heir, and to everybody’s shock it’s Princess Moo Young. Almost all provide with their protests of having a queen in Goguryeo, but the king argues by saying that Silla has queens so there’s no reason why Goguryeo can’t. And the king stresses that General Yeon has to oversee construction on The Wall after tomorrow’s military parade even though it means the General might skip the installation ceremony. Jang is probably the most disappointed person because not even him, almost everybody thinks he’s the best candidate as the heir for the throne.

The king’s senior guard offers his sympathy to Jang as he understands how disappointed Jang now. Jang is the most suitable and strongest candidate but the king prefers to install his own blood for the throne. Moo Young offers her sympathy too for her beloved cousin, totally misreading him and tell him how she’s thankful to have him on her side.

Choong finally regains his consciousness and is confronted by his dad. Choong tells him that all he did was to protect the princess AND his father, which then makes him ask his dad about what his philosophy is when he has to deal with the people he loves. Can he really just keep them in his heart without letting them giving any impact on the decisions he makes? The question gets to the General but then he says: “I cannot coexist with the royal family. Tomorrow, at the parade, I will cut off the king’s head.”

The crown prince wakes up though he’s still in bed and praises his father’s decision to make his sister as the heir to the throne. He’s serious with what he says because he knows he doesn’t want and doesn’t have the heart to be a ruler. His father wants to comfort him and promises that the dinner tonight will be consisted of his favourite dishes and invite Jang and the senior guard along. Nevertheless the sweet-natured prince tells her sister how she looks beautiful in her warrior attire, “But I think you’d be even prettier in a wedding gown. I’d really like to see that.” Awww it’s cute to know that the prince is also Choong – Moo Young’s biggest shipper.

Back to General Yeon’s resident. Now the General gives Choong a choice: “The princess, or filial piety? You can’t have both. Will you come with me or die here?”

“I will come with you,” Choong decides.

General Yeon knows Choong so well so he can’t just believe with Choong’s  wish to join him. He then gives Choong his order: “Bring the princess’ head to me.”

“If I bring her to you, will everything be resolved?” Choong asks, his expression unchanging.

In her quarter Moo Young draws her swords, “It’s not that I’ll be killing your father. I’ll be killing a traitor of Goguryeo!”

Cr to Nate Newsen and The Blade And Petal Soompi Forum

Moo Young does comes to the inn just because she still misses him so much, and now she’s positive that her beloved is alive. Thanks to the Hanja. She remembers Choong’s friend Jin Gu during the archery show and thinks that probably Jin Gu knows Choong whereabouts. She goes meet Jin Gu and disappointed when he totally perplexed of why she still thinks that Choong is alive while everybody saw he was hung to death.

Moo Young goes back to General Yeon’s home, now certain that his son’s death was faked. While she’s standing outside thinking of how she can get the answer of the mystery behind Choong’s faked death, two of the Geumhwadan members sees her and takes her with them to their secret station. They’re waiting for Shi Woo to get out of the house.

Shi Woo tries to escape without getting noticed from General Yeon’s guards, but his wet shoeprints leaves visible trails of him. The Geumhwadan are so worried over Shi Woo which makes Leader So gets takes Boo-Chi to go look for him.

General Yeon and his guards are all now wants to catch the person who dares to sneak into the house since his footprints can’t be ignored. Shi Woo hides pretty well by clinging to the bottom of an overhanging roof. Luckily to him a servant tells General Yeon how he spilled some water, hence the footprints. General Yeon caution makes him checking the servant’s story by examining his boots, which then confirmed are wet too. Back on the roof, Leader So grabs Shi Woo’s hand to catch him from falling. Together they leave General Yeon’s home and go back to their headquarters.

Thanks to Shi Woo’s reports, now The Geumhwadan able to tell the king everything about General Yeon’s rebellion plan. They discuss seriously on the options to ruin the rebellion. First, they can attack the General Yeon but it can lead to a civil war. The second, they can send him to The Wall before the crown prince ceremony but risk revealing that now they know his plan.

The last option is, to just pretend like they don’t know anything but actually the palace guards and all the king source are ready to attack and catch General Yeon’s people in the act. By this way General Yeon’s betrayal can be openly exposed at the ceremony, giving the king all the reason he needs to execute the General and his disloyal followers.

The king approves to the third option, “We must kill the traitors at all costs.” Moo Young is troubled though, because she knows that the Yeon family will be destroyed after the ceremony including Choong. She can’t let that happen. She meets her cousin tries to make him speak about the truth of Choong’s death, but he keeps up with his story: “I saw it with my own eyes. He died.” Jang continues by asking her to let Choong go in peace.

When Choong meets his father, all he needs to say is “changing the world” and Choong immediately realizes that his father plans to revolt. The General believes that betrayal is suited best with the king and his supporters who talk about peace while in reality Tang is just ready to attack Goguryeo.

Choong argues that it’s not enough to excuse killing the king and his descendants. The General  encourages Choong to express his opinion, and he replies him that he thinks his father’s plan is a coward’s one. His father disagrees by saying the king is the wrong one, and only by having the right king they can save Goguryeo and reinforce its power.

“There must be a different way,” Choong says. “Do you know that the princess treated me, a low life, without any prejudice? She gave me the courage that even I, who once was a slave, could live doing something valuable. Moreover, even though she knew that she was betraying the king, she put her own life on the line to save me. How can I betray such a princess? As long as I breathe, it will never happen.”

He adds, “I will not forgive anyone who will try to harm the princess.” General Yeon asks if that means he willing to cut off his father’s head then, but Choong doesn’t want to betray him either—so he offers his head instead. If the General Yeon wants to carry on with the plan, he’ll have to kill Choong first.

General Yeon sneers at his determination, and slowly stands to peels a back of the canvas from one of his ancestral portraits. The real portrait emerges from the peeled outer canvas reveals that it’s the portrait of Choong’s mother. That actually it’s her face the General spends so much time staring at for hours.

It’s a huge shock to Choong knowing that his father actually keeps his mother’s portrait all this time. Since he was a kid no matter that his mother insists that his father was a good man, he didn’t believe it. He thought his father heartlessly abandoned his mother and him, just because of their low status as slaves.  so that portrait is quite mind blowing for him.

General Yeon: “The royal family tried to kill you. No, they did kill you. What I’m about to do will revive you.” He says that if the royal family were let to live the way they are, then Choong would have to live the rest of his life in hiding.

Nevertheless Choong’s resolve remains unshaken, just because his father kept his mother’s portrait it doesn’t mean he can persuade him, “I can live in hiding for the rest of my life. I can even live in imprisonment. I’ll live as if I were dead. However, no one can harm the princess.”

His father shakes his head at his steadfastness before he tells Choong that he won’t be able to step foot outside until this is all over. He locks him in the chamber.

Attempting to contact  Choong, Moo Young goes to the inn and writes a message to him that he should leave the capital immediately. She wants him away when the king wiped out the Yeon family.

Leader So tells the Geumhwadan they’ll come the palace secretly that night to be prepared for the next day’s ceremony. In the mean time, the king briefs Jang about the upcoming rebellion threat later at the ceremony, but the king also notice how quiet and distant Moo Young appears s throughout the discussion. The king warns her to behave as usual to avoid suspicion, because the palace would be in chaos if they knew a rebellion was about to come.

More importantly, the king doesn’t want the prince to know. Moo Young visits her brother to check his well–being, and appreciates her concern even though he knows how she must be in pain and hurt at heart at the loss of Choong. It’s not only his brother that Moo Young worries, she also keeps worrying whether Choong saw her message.

Just like Moo Young concerns about his safety, Choong does the same way. He stares at his mother’s portrait that night and made his mind. Regardless of how his mother’s wish was to see him join the Yeon family, a wish he also used to nurture once, he won’t materialize it. “I can’t obey my father the way he is now,” Choong thinks. “I must protect the princess. Please forgive this foolish son.”

Ceremony day. Jang prepares his men for the rebellion while General Yeon comes to the chamber where Choong is locked. He then instructs the guards to let the door open for Choong out, but he mentions once again that a true member of the Yeon family wouldn’t reject the fate of the family. Basically, what Dad does, Son must follows.

While General Yeon’s small army heads for the ceremony as planned, Choong walks to the open door and fights a few soldiers to find out which gate his father’s army plans to infiltrate the palace.

Then he goes out to meet his friend Jin Gu to seek for help, his friend is still very sad over his death, and so surprised when he sees that his dead hyung is alive.

The crown prince decides to practice with his horse before the ceremony, but the poison attacks  his horse sooner than General Yeon’s so that he falls off during the practice not the ceremony. The prince injury is pretty bad but the king insists that everything has to be carried on in orders before General Yeon’s side recognize that the king knows their rebellion plan.

The dead horse pretty much telling that there’s a spy in the palace, Boo Chi from the Geumhwadan agrees to exam the horse to find the cause of death, later the poison reveals it only stored in the palace as medicine herbs and the only person who can access it is the palace doctor.

General Yeon’s first group of assassins is blocked already from entering, confirming that the rebellion is about to erupt. Choong uses Jin Gu to find the secret passageway Moo Young used  to sneak into the prison which only means it’s also goes through the palace gates. He beats a few soldier before disguising himself as one of them.

The palace doctor is arrested immediately while General Yeon’s people leads the army to the north gate, where they plan to scale the wall. Shi Woo, along with Young-hae and Seol-young, prepare for the fight back on the other side. The general himself and his supporters now enter through the front gate carrying their family banners with their swords hidden in the pole.

General Yeon’s soldiers begin to scale the north gate, but suddenly a masked soldier leaps from above to cut their ropes. They all fall to the ground, and Choong reveals his face to the commander of the soldiers to tell him that he’s the one who responsible for that.

The Geumhwadan see the masked soldier and report the king that General Yeon’s soldiers failed to scale the north gate because of a palace guard’s sudden intervention.

Moo Young somehow guesses that it’s Choong, and when the king asks how a palace guard can counter such a secret attack, Leader So replies that it looks like there are more people know about today’s plan. With all the recent development, Leader So advises the king to cancel the ceremony, an idea the king strongly opposes because all he needs is to catch General Yeon rebellion in action. But the fact is, neither group of rebellion army made it into the palace, so they don’t have the evidence they need.

Their only hope is that General Yeon and his men will be caught with swords hidden in the flagpoles, but it doesn’t sound promising too. Not to mention there’s no guarantee that the captured palace doctor will confess that he’s part of General Yeon’s scheme. Briefly, Leader So says they don’t have enough evidence and that if the king attacks General Yeon without it, everything will backfire on him.

General Yeon and his people are so ready to draw their swords from their flagpoles when somehow the soldiers at the gate begin to inspect their flagpoles too. It’s just so in time that Jang arrives to announce that the ceremony has been delayed.

General Yeon’s people grumble about the rebellion’s failure, and his guard whispers to him that Choong was responsible for the north gate failure. The upset General orders that his son to be captured ASAP.

Moo Young hears how whoever saved the north gate sneak in through the secret passageway, disguises as a palace guard, and is possibly still inside the palace because of the tightened security. She has to remain calmly because she knows for sure, it must be Choong. She moves anxiously in her room expecting and worrying for Choong, when all of a sudden a man stands behind her as his hand gently closes her mouth to stop her from screaming. “Princess,” he calls her.

She turns around from the man’s arms, only to find it’s really Choong standing in front of her.

Cr to  Nate , Naver and The Blade And Petal Soompi Forum