Summary
Captivating the King sets up the final two episodes with a potentially deadly cliffhanger.
Episode 13 and Episode 14 of Captivating the King are in many ways neat summaries of why Season 1 has become so popular over the last few weeks. There’s shrewd political manipulation, romance, backstabbing, and a clearer villain beginning to emerge in the form of Principal Director Park and the Queen Dowager (not that this is really much of a surprise.)
All of these composite elements have been the backbone of the season’s drama, and as we close in on the end, it doesn’t seem to be losing any of its edge.
In the cliffhanger ending of Episode 12, Hee-soo had just given away a planned assassination attempt on Lee In, which results in Hee-soo being (non-fatally) stabbed and Dal-ha being arrested. Lee In wants to understand what he’s dealing with here, so Hee-soo explains that it was her long-held desire to kill him, believing him to be a power-hungry ruler – an opinion which had only calcified when she overheard his conversation with Park about Munseong.
However, Hee-soo also reveals that despite her convictions when it came to revenge, her feelings for the King remained. She both loved him and wanted him to pay for what she perceived him to have done. And, understandably, she was confused by that.
What does Lee In do with Dal-ha?
Lee In is less confused since he knew what was going on behind his back and is taking his time in deciding what to do with Dal-ha to protect him. His late brother’s final wish was that Munseong ascended the throne, but Lee In hadn’t revealed this, instead taking power himself. This is what he believes he needs to atone for.
Knowing a thing or two about making the wrong decisions for the right reasons, then, Lee In decides not to execute Dal-ha for his treason and to instead have him name the spies who were responsible for passing information to the Qing dynasty – and were ultimately responsible for his brother’s death by poisoning. Of course, Principal Director Park is behind everything, and with Dal-ha’s backing Lee In decides to formally put him on trial.
This decision does not go down well, either with the council of ministers or Park himself.
What is Park’s plan?
Park’s kind of hilarious. He’s really put out by the idea that the king is putting him on trial when he has done so much for him, but those things include providing intel to Prince Rui and having Lee In’s brother killed. The idea that this was somehow altruistic and a way to seat Lee In on the throne out of kindness is so ridiculous that it almost beggars belief, and on some level, Park knows it, which is why he takes more drastic measures.
These measures are, essentially, implying that if he confesses, it will implicate the King. As it turns out, though, if you annoy a person to this extent, they’ll take any risk to get rid of you, and the King is willing to pay the cost of getting rid of Park – however steep it ends up being.
How does Captivating the King Season 1 Episode 14 end?
Park’s last resort is an assassination attempt. Since he’s not the type to do it himself, he calls on his favorite tool, court lady Dong, who he used to poison the former king. She dons some poisonous lippy to give the King a deadly smooch, seeing no other choice under Park’s threats of exposing her.
The episode ends with the King offering Lady Dong the opportunity to turn state’s witness and be protected. She asks the kind for final favor, one last moment of intimacy, and approaches to kiss him.
