The Scandal of Chun Hwa Episode 7, Episode 8: The Fateful Turn

Content of The Scandal of Chun Hwa in the previous episode

Episode 6 opens with a mystery: Choi Hwan, who is said to be the author of "The Tale of Chun-hwa". Meanwhile, Jang Won, unable to keep quiet, reveals Hwa-ing's story to his father. Unexpectedly, Jang Won's father exposes his son's wrongdoings in front of the king.

Although the king was outraged by the book's content, he secretly understood that its popularity was a form of protest against injustice. Meanwhile, soldiers arrested the bookstore owner who had distributed the book to the common people. It turned out that Hwa-ing's uncle was behind the arrest, torturing the booksellers to find out the author's identity. However, they claimed that they had no idea who the author was.

The next day, Jang Won goes to see Hwa-ri, but she formally rejects him. Instead of being discouraged, Jang Won resolves to take the national exam, inspired to fight against injustice. Meanwhile, Hwa-ri bids farewell to Hwa-jin, who has accepted her future. The crown prince's concubines are formally welcomed into the palace, just as Crown Prince Lee Seung leaves the palace to spend time with Hee-Ryeon.

Content of The Scandal of Chun Hwa in the previous episode

At a gathering of ladies, Hwa-ri learns that the king is looking for Lee Mong-heon, the author of "The Tale of Chun-hwa." Since the gisaeng is a bookstore, she goes to see Choi Hwan, who admits that he is only the publisher and not the author. He then takes action to rescue the captured employees who were imprisoned by Hwa-ing's uncle.

Choi Hwan was then summoned to the royal court, where he again claimed ignorance of the author's identity. He explained that he had always received manuscripts anonymously, and that the author had refused any profits. Reiterating an old promise from the king, Choi Hwan negotiated his freedom in exchange for destroying the remaining copies of the book and turning over the profits to the government .

Meanwhile, Crown Prince Lee Seung visits Hee-Ryeon again, and she confesses her feelings. He returns her love, and they spend the night together.

The next day, the gisaeng house staff are released, and Hwa-ri visits them. Elsewhere, Hwa-ing's uncle orders his men to follow Choi Hwan, hoping to find out the author's identity.

While accepting the bribe, Hwa-ing notices a striking similarity between the paintings in "The Tale of Chun-hwa" and the work of the royal painter. Suspicious, he arrests the painter. Hwa-ri tries to intervene, but the royal painter does not deny his authorship.

Late at night, Choi Hwan receives a text message from the real author, asking him to come to a secret meeting. The episode ends as Choi Hwan arrives at the meeting place, only to discover that the real author is Hwa-ri, disguised as a man.