Our Blooming Youth 2023 Episode 14

Episode 14 of Our Blooming Youth begins with Jo Won-bo holding a celebration and receiving gifts from the officials in his family. Jo Won-oh laments that he came empty-handed because a little boy broke the porcelain he intended to give Jo Won-bo. He shares the fascinating details of the accident and how the Crown Prince intervened.

A message arrives for Jo Won-bo that his man has arrived and he goes out to hear the report. His henchman tells him that the Crown Prince was accompanying Sung-on and Soon-dol. The man is sure that the Sung-on and the eunuch are dead and the Crown Prince won’t make it out of the forest alive on his own. Jo Won-bo is elated to hear the news and thinks they managed to kill three birds with one stone.

Elsewhere, Min Jae-yi and Sung-on rush the Crown Prince to a doctor in Paju. The doctor tells them that he has no styptic (used to stop bleeding) and Sung-on offers to run to the doctor’s home to get it. On the way, he finds commotion outside a home and learns that Oh Man Sik’s family has been killed.

He returns to the doctor and uses the styptic to stop the bleeding. However, the doctor cautions them that the Crown Prince shouldn’t be moved. Unfortunately, they can’t take that risk in case the armed men are nearby. They move the Crown Prince somewhere else and wait for him to wake up.

Of course, Min Jae-yi is a crying mess by his side as she blames herself for bringing him into danger. She tearfully begs him to wake up and he finally does. He tells them that he is glad they are all alive and asks her to stop crying.

The next morning, Jo Won-bo passes by the Eastern Palace and hears that the Crown Prince is indisposed due to a cold. He goes to the daily Court Meetings and brings up the rumour that the Crown Prince has been leaving the palace under disguise to pursue worldly pleasures. Jo Won-oh gives his testimony of how he met the Crown Prince near the market.  The Han officials deny this and Jo Won-bo insists they check if the Crown Prince is at the Eastern Palace.

The King escorted by Chief State Councilor Kim An-Jik, Left State Councilor Han Joong-eon and Jo Won-bo left right away for the Eastern Palace. There they find the Crown Prince, Sun-on and Eunuch Soon-dol. The Crown Prince welcomes them and asks them not to worry about his recovery.  Jo Won-bo is too stunned to speak and the officials leave. The King remains behind and finds out that the Crown Prince got injured outside the palace.

He asks if he will be okay. He is angry that someone tried to kill the Crown Prince and Sung-on points out they were chasing Oh Man Sik who is from Byeokcheon.  The King is quick to think that the people of Byeokcheon are trying to end the family. However, the Crown Prince corrects him and says that the person responsible is probably Jo Won- bo.

Sung-on believes that they killed Oh Man Sik so he won’t identify Jo Won-bo as the mastermind. The King warns the Crown Prince to take extra caution and never let his enemies see his weakness. He says it is not the right time to go after the Jo family and scolds the Crown Prince for not understanding why he confined him.

After the King leaves, Sung-on reports a strange rumour he heard in Paju about Oh Man Sik’s family. According to his neighbours, he sent a lot of stuff back to their hometown, Gaesong. Min Jae-yi and the Crown Prince are surprised to hear this, and it is even strange that they sent things that could be easily found in Gaesong.

The Crown Prince remembers that Oh Man Sik was adamant that they were not bandits. He sends Sung-on to meet with Oh Man Sik’s sister-in-law.

At the same time, Jo Won-bo is furious that the Crown Prince and his two friends are alive. He asks Jo Won-oh to tell him again where he saw the Crown Prince.

In the meantime, Tae-gang follows Park Han-su and overhears him blackmailing a fellow Jo family member. He wants money or he will talk about the shady things the family has been doing. He is given the money and he leaves in high spirits.

Back at the palace, the Crown Prince develops a fever and Min Jae-yi nurses him throughout the night.  He wakes up in the middle of the night and calls her by her name he asks how she knew that he will be in the east.  Min Jae-yi tells him that she knows where to find him and he responds that he knows where to wait for her. He asks if she is hurt and she assures him she is fine.

Meanwhile, Sung-on spends the night alone wondering why Eunuch Soon-dol hugged the Crown Prince. He finds it strange that a fellow man would display such emotions towards another man.

Later that night, Min Jae-yi is so happy that the Crown Prince called her by her name. She spends the night smiling to herself, being the perfect definition of whipped!

The next morning, Myung-jin finds himself in hot trouble with his mom who is angry that he is two-timing women. Myung-jin was unaware that someone met with his fiancée to ask her to withdraw from the marriage. Myung-jin is so happy that there is a woman who loves him and lets his mom spank him.

In the market, Ga-ram investigates the origin of the bracelet the merchant sold to Myung-jin’s fiancée. Unfortunately, she is not able to get much information. She meets Bok-soon and she escorts her to her clients. While there, they witness a woman being kicked out because she is from Byeokcheon. Bok-soon traces the woman and offers to help her because she trusts in her skills.

In the palace, Min Jae-yi is abducted as part of the loyalty test to see if she will betray the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince is angry to hear about this hazing ritual among the eunuchs and reprimands them. He rushes to save Min Jae-yi but she held her own and refused to say anything. She even managed to fight back and the other eunuchs report that she is carrying a pocket knife.

The Crown Prince asks the head eunuch not to confiscate it as it was a gift he gave Soon-dol. He also declares that Soon-dol passed the loyalty test and the other eunuchs believe he is playing favourites. Concurrently, the court lady reports this and the fact that Min Jae-yi is wary of Tae-gang.

The Crown Prince takes Min Jae-yi to the library to check if she got hurt. She is happy that he cares for her well-being but he tells her that he has to let her go. He asks her to go back to Sung-on and he is sure that he will trust her. He is worried that keeping her by his side will lead to her being hurt.

Min Jae-yi refuses to go back to Sung-on and says he can’t leave him to be in danger alone. She wants to keep her promise and protect him to the end. She also feels that she is close to proving her innocence and is not willing to give up. Lastly, she says she can’t go back as she is in love with one man. The Crown Prince is shocked to hear this and asks how that happened given that she is dressed as a eunuch.

Speaking of Sung-on, he arrives home to find his cousin from Jangju. She is set to enter the Crown Princess selection and they have started preparing. His dad asks him to help her as she is new to the capital.

Night rolls by and Jo Won-bo sends his henchman to Myung-jin’s lab. The henchman finds the Wanted Posters of Min Jae-yi all over the wall. He takes one with him and reports it to his boss. Jo Won-bo is surprised to see that Myung-jin addressed Min-Jae-Yi as the woman he loves on the poster.

As they talk, he receives a visit from the bounty hunters who tell him about Ga-ram and the fact that they were unable to find Min Jae-yi. After listening to their story, he realizes that Min Jae-yi is actually Eunuch Soon-dol. He pays the bounty hunters and tells them he will take care of Ga-ram himself.

Back in the palace, the queen receives the secret messages being exchanged around the palace about the Crown Prince. She is informed that he got hurt in Paju and that Soon-dol is wary of Tae-gang. She asks about Oh Man Sik and his family and whether they got a decent burial.

The next day, the Crown Prince leaves the palace in disguise with Min Jae-yi. He is angry that she is in love with another man and asks her to keep her distance. He is curious to know who this mysterious man is and fails to realize it is him. Min Jae-yi tells him that the man is clueless and slow-witted. She keeps looking at him with loving eyes but he is blind to her feelings.

The Crown Prince argues that such a man is not worthy of her love and asks her to give him up. Min Jae-yi retorts that it is her feeling so he should mind his own business. They visit Myung-jin who offers to buy them food as he is ecstatic that a woman in Joseon loves him. They head over to Bok-soon’s tavern where they meet the kids and learn Bok-soon and Man-deok asked the kids to live with them.

Ga-ram pulls Min Jae-yi aside and informs her about the bracelet sold to Myung-jin’s fiancée. She is sure it was the same one Sim-yeong gave Min Jae-yi. They spend the day having fun and playing games, but Myung-jin and the Crown Prince get competitive. As a result, the Crown Prince loses and is forced to buy dinner. The Crown Prince even learns a few traditions he didn’t know before!

As they eat, they hear news of a death in the streets and rush out to see what’s happened. In doing so, they find Myung-jin’s fiancée dead. She is wearing the bracelet she bought from the merchant. Min Jae-yi manages to take it and Myung-jin notices but Ga-ram asks him not to speak up.

Jo Won-bo is thrilled that he now has a card against the Crown Prince, while the others wonder what led to the young lady’s death in the streets

The Episode Review

What an interesting turn of events! Jo Won-bo was just sitting and some hot information landed on his lap. This won’t be great news for Min Jae-yi and the Crown Prince. I wonder how he will play this card given what a diabolical mastermind he is.

It was fascinating to watch the Crown Prince interact with the others at the tavern. He is the future king but he is humble and has a loving heart for his people. As he watched them sing while eating dinner, he might have seen how united and happy they were at the small blessings. It was a moving scene.

I am curious to see how long it will take him to figure out that Min Jae-yi loves him. He already knows he has feelings for her. He is doing his best to keep them at bay because she is Sung-on’s fiancée. It is a hard fate to deal with as he doesn’t want to hurt his best friend. They need to hurry up and tell Sung-on before he hears it from someone else. It might ease the pain of betrayal!

It was a shocking twist to learn that the Queen is behind the secret messages being passed around in the palace. We know she is against Jo Won-bo but we still don’t know her motives and her plan.