The Blue Night of Jeju II
Myeong-Seok is in the hospital after stage 3 stomach cancer. He intends to get surgery when he returns to the mainland after this case.
Young-Woo, the optimist, points out the stats surrounding survival rate which is only 30-40%. Young-Woo knows that Myeong-Seok needs to eat and wonders whether they should try and find the owner of Haengbok Noodles so he can experience this again in case he passes away. Surprisingly, even Min-Woo is all-in on this idea too! ..
Haengbok Noodles, a popular noodle restaurant in the city, closed its doors after years of business. The restaurant’s owner has not been found and it is unclear what happened to him. It seems that Haengbok Noodles didn’t quite fit with the times and may have been unable to change with them. We’ll find out soon!
The strange man heads to the site of Haengbok Noodles, grabs some cat food, and leaves. Jun-Ho is curious and follows him. He finds out that the man is actually one of the old chefs from Haengun Noodles, who was once a rival of his. The man tells Jun-Ho that he used to make cat food there too. Jun-Ho is surprised and intrigued by this story and decides to ask him more questions.
Jun-Ho is caught in the act of working in the kitchen. He was recruited by the owner of Haengun Noodles, but the man is quick to point out that Haengbok Noodles was the definitive original.
Haengbok originally did well because word got out about how good the restaurant was. This guy then recruited others to start cooking noodles for Haengun, meaning they essentially stole the same business idea, went bigger with marketing and promotion and stole all the customers. As a result, the owner of Haengbok was forced to close. It would appear that he’s gone off to find a place where “mountains and waters are nice.” ..
When Young-Woo hears this, she wonders whether it could be the Mountain Water Nursing Home. So off she goes to the Nursing Home. The owner’s mother actually stays there and the owner of the noodle shop showed up yesterday so they just missed him. It would appear he’ll be coming back in a month’s time but that doesn’t really help them right now.
After 17 minutes of side quest, we finally return to main boss of the game. That being, of course, Cultural Heritage case with Mr Kim. Young-Woo steps up and breaks down financial aid and help this temple is receiving. She asks about budget breakdown and whether it would be possible to check money but her question is deemed sarcastic by the judge and defendants, taking everyone aback. Even worse, Cultural Heritage Act is pretty much a surefire thing so it doesn’t seem like they have much of a leg to stand on. ..
Young-Woo heads to the hospital, asking Myeong-Seok for legal counsel. However, Ji-Su is there and naturally, Young-Woo brings up their awkward ties together. Uh oh! Watching the two attorneys chat, Ji-Su realizes that she left him because she always felt lonely and wasn’t happy as a result. ..
Jun-Ho and Young-Woo are discussing their feelings for each other. Jun-Ho is unsure if he’ll be able to be with Young-Woo because she doesn’t seem sure if she can make him happy. Young-Woo contemplates whether this whole ordeal will just make Jun-Ho feel lonely when they’re together.
Jun-Ho and Young-Woo are discussing whether or not they should date when Jun-Ho tells her that he has been told by an Abbot that “being blinded by what you see” is a problem. Jun-Ho suggests they talk about it more, but Annoyingly, Young-Woo doesn’t actually tell him why she thinks this. Instead, she gets distracted when Jun-Ho tells her something that Abbot said about “being blinded by what you see.”
As she begins rattling on about the case, completely oblivious to how heartbroken Jun-Ho is, she begins walking away. Poor Jun-Ho is left dumbfounded over Young-Woo’s comments.
The judge in the case agrees with Young-Woo that the highway is public property, but he also agrees that Mr Kim can’t be charged because he used it and there’s no charge for using land owned by the local government. This means that there are bigger problems afoot. The first problem is that the judge has ruled in favor of Mr Kim, but now Young-Woo has to prove that he actually won the case. This is a difficult task, as it’s not clear how much evidence was actually presented in court.
Jun-Ho and Min-Woo break up after Young-Woo leaves. Jun-Ho blames Min-Woo for the break-up, and Min-Woo believes that visiting Seung-Hui and overhearing them speaking is the reason for the break-up.
While Jun-Ho ends up passing out at home, Min-Woo and Su-Yeon chat on the balcony. Su-Yeon is confused by Min-Woo’s newfound niceties and eventually Min-Woo learns that she likes him. While the pair stare at one another as if it’s the end of the episode, Young-Woo and the others end up seeing them and decide to head back to the karaoke there were visiting, with Geurami deciding that her shattered heart needs music to liven her up.
With the Hwangjisa ticket booth closed and free passage now allowed on the road, the gang stop by the temple at Hwangjisa one more time. Myeong-Seok speaks to the Abbott about turning this into a foundation. In fact, he decides they should get the local government involved and turn this into a park. ..
As it is difficult to communicate with the government, Myeong-Seok decides to ask his law firm for help. Hanbada has a dedicated team that can help straighten this out and get them the help they need. The Abbott decides to think it over but for now, he joins the other monks to share food.
The noodles here are just as good as the ones at Haengbok Noodles, and it’s clear that the chef is the same one who makes them. This place definitely has a nice atmosphere!
Young-Woo decides to take on the unfair competition and laws that are preventing him from becoming an attorney. Everyone rallies around him, with Myeong-Seok standing proudly as he hears his staff helps this man out.
As Myeong-Seok tastes the noodles and smiles, mentioning how good it tastes, Young-Woo watches Myeong-Seok’s smiling and happy face. Eventually it comes time for everyone to head home, where the attention turns back to Young-Woo’s parental ties.
The CEO of Han’s company, Young-Woo, is Su-Mi’s daughter. Lee knows this to be true and he even confirms it to her. She promises to tell him everything on one condition - he needs to publish the article right before Su-Mi’s confirmation hearing. He agrees and is forbidden from speaking to Young-Woo until after the article is released too. A sly smile crosses her lips.
The Episode Review
In this episode, we take a look at the character subplots as Woo breaks up with Jun-Ho, Min-Woo and Su-Yeon are shipping each other, and Young-Woo is finally able to break up with his girlfriend.
Despite the subtle hints, it’s still hard to say for sure if Min-Woo and Park Jin-Sung will get together. They are similar and have had some awkward moments, but it’s also possible that their differences will work in their favor. We’ll have to see! Personally, I can understand why Min-Woo has acted in the way he has, especially after learning about South Korea’s competitive work field and his struggles back home.
Myeong-Seok’s past and dedication to work end up causing one heck of a moral dilemma for Young-Woo, who sees a piece of herself and Jun-Ho’s future in the way these two interact. Realizing that Jun-Ho will always be second best to her work (and, well, third best if you count whales and dolphins!) it seems she’s done this to try and save him the bhurt further down the line.
The case essentially plays second fiddle to this character-driven ensemble again, with everything here hearing up for a dramatic final two episodes to come. Will our characters find happiness? We’ll have to wait and find out!
