Sister.
Sister…
DEAR HONGRANG
MIN FAMILY'S GUILD
- Young Master! - Young Master!
- Good heavens! - Young Master!
Young Mistress!
Young Master Hongrang
has disappeared!
Hongrang!
Please have mercy on my son.
Hongrang, my dear Hongrang.
Please reunite me with my son.
Hongrang!
My Hongrang… Please…
Gods of heaven and earth, please…
Hongrang!
Hongrang…
Sister, can you see me?
Hongrang.
Can you see me?
I can
always
see you.
12 YEARS LATER
So this is what the missing child would look like now?
- How could he? He's already dead. - He's dead?
It's been 12 years. If he were alive, he would have found his way home by now.
That child was eaten alive.
- Eaten alive? By whom? - Eaten alive? By whom?
His sister.
His sister is not human. She is a demon.
That demon still lurks in the shadows of the Min Family's Guild.
Unable to forget the taste of its little brother's flesh,
the demon is said to hunt at night for children to devour.
Deuk-gil disappeared last year. Is he also…
That's right. He must be in the demon's belly.
Yuk-son.
Yes, madam.
Where
is my son?
He must be on his way home.
Right.
And I got this scar on the top of my foot
while I was at my great-uncle's house.
I was careless enough to touch the heating stove, you see.
Father, do you truly not recognize me?
It is I, Hongrang.
Then tell me how I got this scar.
How could I possibly know about your scar, Father?
No. If you are indeed Hongrang, you must surely know.
Things often disappear from the grounds of our guild.
Trifling thieves lurk everywhere.
Even so, we do not seek out and punish them all for their deeds.
The theft of some things
is of little consequence, you see.
My son's name, however, is not one of them.
Master, the grand prince seeks you urgently.
What do you think?
Does it not feel as though you are in a dream?
I wonder who dared to engrave
such mystical patterns on those delicate, slender wings.
Watching these small creatures flutter tirelessly
adds zest to my dreamlike state…
soothing my disgruntled mind and melting it away like snow.
Forgive me, Your Highness.
I shall ensure that all items are meticulously examined from now on
and only present you with the finest.
I told you, it is forgotten.
No creation of man
can be entirely without flaw.
Come over here.
I hear that, recently, my uncle finds himself weakened
and plagued by frequent nightmares.
I hope to gift him a tiger and bamboo painting.
Would you care to take a look at what I have drafted thus far?
This piece is as detailed as real scenery.
It is so exquisite
that I could not possibly offer a comment.
- Is that so? - Indeed, Your Highness.
Then I shall hasten to finish it.
I shall need paper.
A piece that has undergone six dilutions, rendering it free of any defects.
Consider it done, sir.
And that way?
All blocked, sir.
How dare he trick Jo Bang-suk.
- We must catch that cunning rat. - Yes, sir!
I see a light over there!
- Chase him! - Yes, sir.
I want him alive!
- Leave no stone unturned! - Yes, sir!
He's here!
- Seize him! - Get him!
Stop right there!
Stop!
And who might you be?
I asked you a question.
I am Mu-jin
of the Sim household.
I see. You're of the Min Family's Guild.
You must be the one they adopted after their only son vanished.
But… what business have you here at this late hour?
I was returning from a visit to our local branches.
Considering your failure to apologize for your impolite manner and speech,
am I to take this as an affront?
And what if you are?
Wealthy though you are, you remain mere merchants.
I must see what is inside.
What? Are you concealing something that I must not see?
Do you intend to search a party of the Min Family's Guild?
I do not believe you have any grounds to do so.
I may have no grounds,
but I do have the power.
How do you wish to pay for disgracing my woman?
I did not intend to.
I simply need to find someone urgently…
You shall also have to pay for subduing a party of the Min Family's Guild
and thus insulting us.
But before anything else,
shall I inquire at the government office why armed rogues were mobilized
at such a late hour?
Goodness, I must apologize.
I must have had one too many drinks.
I merely wanted to put on airs.
I have someplace I must be.
Let us go. Now!
Let us go!
Yes, sir!
How could you go so far as to provoke such a vile man?
How can you be so reckless?
Thank goodness I found you first.
What if he had gotten to you before me?
I suppose my shins would have been twisted by now.
No. Considering how he has the temperament of a dog,
I would have lost one of my limbs by now.
I have you to thank for saving me.
What a grand way to welcome your older brother,
whom you have not seen in three months.
I missed you.
You have done well.
You swiftly rid our branches of all the excess inventory
that had accumulated over several years.
I simply adhered to your teachings, Father.
As you know, we'll sign an agreement with the Uiju merchants in three days.
Congratulations.
You shall stand at the forefront of the ceremony.
- Sorry? - Lead the procession.
And stamp the agreement papers.
But all silver transactions fall under Madam's authority.
You would be far better suited.
How could I possibly dare to…
Do you know why I disregarded my wife's firm objections 12 years ago
and insisted on taking you in as my adopted son?
To have me replace Hongrang, was it not?
It was to have you replace me.
I intend to have you step into my role.
The most opportune time to solidify my position is now,
when my wife is not of sound body or mind.
Go and show everyone
who you truly represent.
Are you deaf?
I told you to bring more!
I am under orders to ensure you do not use them excessively.
Whose orders? You are not to obey any orders but mine.
- Madam, please calm down. - Bring me more right now!
- Madam, please sit up. - Let go of me!
I told you to bring more.
- Bring me more this instant! - Madam, you must calm down.
Goodness, what an irresponsible mother.
Let us go back.
I should not have come.
I doubt she is in the right mind
to recognize her son even if she were to reunite with him.
Madame Gwigokja?
Madame Gwigokja. Please wait.
Madame Gwigokja. What about my son?
Where is my son?
Do you truly care about the whereabouts of your son?
A true mother would never fall apart so helplessly.
The longer his absence, the sturdier the place of return must be.
How could you lose yourself like this
when you need to be prepared at all times?
I only wished to see his face again.
That is all.
Lost in intoxication,
I see my son's face every once in a while.
I acted so
due to an unbearable longing to see him.
Please listen. I shall put an end to all of this.
So please have grace.
And my son…
Please return my son to me.
Well then,
you must prepare yourself.
A most valued guest shall soon be arriving.
A most valued guest?
You may cover yourself so,
but my eyes will never fail to discern you.
Step aside!
She was strong and healthy.
I am talking about the woman who bore you.
They wouldn't have chosen just anyone to carry the chief merchant's seed.
However,
she helplessly drew her last breath the day she gave birth to you.
But that is not all, is it?
The illness in my father's bowels returned the year you were born.
And Mak-sun, the maid who served you, suffered a fatal head injury.
Once, the chickens left in your quarters were sprawled with their limbs torn off.
You were behind it all, weren't you?
Sorry? No, I…
With a fate such as yours, why didn't you obey me?
I told you to keep your vile and ominous presence away from my son.
I have not attended such a notable ceremony in a long time.
I felt the need to prepare with extra care.
- Oh no! - Goodness!
Let us show them.
Show them your place.
Kneel.
You may step into your carriage.
Why did you not resist? You should not have obeyed her!
Everyone witnessed your mistake. So what now?
The plan was to assert the Sim family's position.
Instead, the Min household has flaunted their unyielding power.
How do you intend to make amends for this humiliating blunder?
I shall make amends
with respect and filial duties toward Madam.
What now?
A critical mistake shall soon occur with Madam's transaction.
I shall take full and sole responsibility for it.
Both today's incident and the one to come
shall show my respect and loyalty to Madam, who is not of sound mind.
And who will compensate for the mistake?
You shall take care of it, Father.
Doing so will have you earn much more in return.
What happened to your face? Did Father…
How is your ankle?
You must have strained a muscle. It should heal soon enough.
Maybe a good night's sleep will make it better.
Why? Where do you intend to go tomorrow?
I wish you would stop.
Stop what? Searching for Hongrang?
No. Planning to leave.
I have long suspected what you and those beggars were doing.
You have been searching for your brother with money earned by deceiving miscreants.
But lately, you seem to be raising the stakes of your game.
- It is simply how things unfolded. - You aim to raise a larger sum.
After years of searching in vain, you believe he may not be in Joseon.
So you are now preparing to leave for Yanjing.
You see through me.
You do not have to struggle so.
I will do it.
The moment I become chief merchant, I will appoint you as a master
and open a branch in Yanjing.
When the time comes, we can go there
and search for him together.
That is simply absurd.
If you did, you would never be able to marry.
What parents would accept a son-in-law who has a half-mad sister like me?
And what if they were to find out we are not related by blood?
A simple misunderstanding could ruin your prospects for marriage forever.
I do not want that for you. I hope to have a sister-in-law one day.
And little nieces and nephews.
You were so sure of your ability to find the child
that you dared ask thrice the fee for him alive or double if he were dead.
A full 12 years have passed
since I paid you an advance.
Word has reached me of you using Grand Prince Hanpyeong's decree
to feather your own nest.
I've been contemplating how to bring forth your untimely end.
Did you come here knowing you would meet your fate?
Your words wound me.
You cannot imagine the hardships I have endured over the years.
Not able to eat or sleep,
I scoured the country's eight provinces like a madman.
I searched for him as though he were my own.
And did you find him?
I did.
Do you know what became of all the men who impersonated my son?
I have heard the gruesome rumors
of men being stuffed alive into pottery kilns
and others being crushed, bone by bone, from their toes.
Even if the rumors are true, those men deserved such a fate.
And you are certain that you do not share their fate?
I am indeed.
Where exactly did you find this man?
Please accept my sincere apologies for having to inform you of this.
He grew up in a courtesan house in Gangneung or the like
and has drifted aimlessly ever since, living as a man of combat.
How unfortunate that such a precious young master
was raised to become a bloodstained swordsman.
What, then, has stopped him from finding his way back?
That is what I find most strange.
He must have been struck by a severe fever
or been victim to some severe trauma.
He claims to remember nothing from his childhood.
He says that he believed he was an orphan for all these years.
For now, say nothing.
I must confirm this discreetly.
That is most unthinkable.
How could I
entrust this task to you alone?
What if
you were to hide my son away
and refuse to return him to me?
What perverse delusion are you entertaining?
I was only concerned that, should he be another imposter,
your condition may worsen.
We cannot blindly trust the words of this lowly man.
"Lowly"?
This man
is my most valued guest.
Sister.
Jae-yi.
Are you all right?
There, there. You are okay.
I did not want to fall asleep,
for I knew this would happen.
Mistress!
Out there…
Young Master Hongrang has returned!
My son!
Madam!
His shoulders are
two cheok and two chi.
His left arm,
two cheok and three chi.
And his right arm,
two cheok and three chi.
And there is a scar on the top of his left foot.
Things seem different this time.
Yes. If he were another imposter, he would have been dragged out by now.
What if it is him? What will become of Young Master Mu-jin?
He must return what is not rightfully his.
Might they send him to a local branch?
Surely they would not dismiss him so abruptly?
The chief merchant doted on him so.
Even so, blood runs thicker than water. Come, let us go.
It has always been this way.
Whenever someone set foot in this place claiming to be Hongrang,
Jae-yi would rush to see him desperately, showing no sign of fatigue.
She has always done so without fail.
Yet this time,
I feel anxious.
He is an imposter.
A moderate resemblance, yes,
but it is not him.
Mistress, we have already confirmed that his bodily scars and features match--
Have any imposters ever failed to meet those standards?
That is not all. The composition and shape of his facial features also match.
He passed the blood kinship test with the chief merchant,
has a weak respiratory system, and is of the lesser yang constitution.
He is indeed Young Master Hongrang.
You cannot all believe that this is really him.
- Jae-yi. - Father.
Look again.
Why do you not look again? How can you also be like this?
I am asking you to look closely before you deny him.
How can you simply disregard all the test results and proof
to conclude that it is not him?
Because it is clear as day.
All right, then. I shall look again.
Tell me. What do you remember?
I do not remember my childhood.
How convenient.
The only memory I have is of playing with my older sister up in the hills.
That proves nothing.
All siblings in Joseon have such memories.
I assume you also remember where we used to go to rest afterward?
That, I do not.
What about the dog that we raised? What was its name?
I do not know.
You cannot remember a dog that you yourself named?
Then what did you fear most?
What did you most hate being teased about?
What was in the sachet I gave you?
Or do you not remember something you held while you slept?
Name the friends you played with in the marketplace.
If no names come to mind, a single description will do.
No, you do not know.
You would never know the answers
because one cannot recall a memory they never had!
You are
no brother of mine.
You are right.
I guess I am not.
I was skeptical about that myself on my journey here.
I hoped seeing my childhood home and meeting my parents
would stir up a faint memory of the past.
Now that I am here, nothing about this place feels familiar.
Seeing the older sister speak this way… I must indeed not be him.
If you will excuse me,
I shall take my leave.
As a mere child,
he was abruptly separated from his parents.
Subjected to such perilous circumstances, how could one's memories remain intact?
Even so, is it not odd that only his childhood memories are forgotten?
That is quite enough.
Leave us.
Madam is here, Master.
My son.
I am ashamed
that I have failed to stay strong and face you now in such weakness.
Please forgive me.
You are mistaken.
What?
He is not
your son, Mother.
Then it must be him.
I am sure of it.
Seeing you act like so
only reassures me that he is my son.
You are aware that you shall now be rendered useless,
so you are desperately trying to hold your breath lest it be your last.
That is right.
You would be wise to hold in that breath forever.
That ominous stench, worse than filth.
Do not let it reach my precious son ever again!
You should not be so quick to judge.
If you observe him for longer…
You have not seen him for so long.
It is only natural that he looks different.
You are wrong.
Not for a single moment
have I let him out of my sight.
Where are you going? Young Master!
Every day, I have wondered how he might have grown
and how much he might have changed.
I drew him from head to toe, day after day, again and again.
Whether I opened my eyes or not, his was the only face I could see.
Hongrang has always been there, standing right before my eyes.
You mean to say that you do not see that face in that man?
I do not.
Hongrang.
I wish you would come back
right now.
Then we could rid ourselves of that imposter
and get back to how we used to be.
Older sister?
He cannot be Hongrang.
Why that little… Is he challenging me now?
Who would not want to forget an older sister like that?
My son.
Please, take a seat.
What is your name?
His name is In-hoe. He was born deaf and nonverbal.
That is most unfortunate,
but are you sure he is capable of protecting you?
There are things that only the blind can sense,
as can this child.
He can read the surroundings
with a sharper instinct than my ears could ever hear.
Especially when sensing…
bloodthirst or animosity.
Forgive me for mentioning this,
but I myself have lived as a man of combat.
I am more than capable of fending for my own safety.
Please keep your worries at bay.
Then, what of his lineage?
If we are to live under one roof, it is the least we should know.
I, too, have remained unaware of my roots all these years.
If his ambiguous background remains a concern, you may send him away,
but I must leave with him.
That shall not be necessary. I was simply curious.
All that matters is that you wish to have him here. Now then, let us eat.
How dare that thing… How dare he show his face here.
I told him to come. You may take a seat there.
You two should greet each other.
This is your older brother
and grandmaster of the guild.
A brother, you say.
He was but a stake kept to stand in your place.
We shall soon be rid of that eyesore, so please pay him no mind.
Mu-jin has been responsible for managing a variety of operations.
He not only oversees the guild,
but is well-versed in transactional routes,
business relations, and strategic dealings of commodities.
You should study diligently under him, Hongrang.
You wish for him
to take my place?
Bear it in mind.
Maybe he believes it.
Perhaps he really believes he is Hongrang
because he has no memories of his childhood.
If not that, why would he risk his life to keep up such a pretense?
What could he want?
Becoming heir to the guild could be worth risking one's life.
We have seen it before with the countless imposters.
This one is nothing like them.
They all came prepared with false tears and a rehearsed act like a jester's,
listing every little detail about this family.
But that guy has shown up claiming he knows nothing.
He remembers nothing, yet everyone believes he is Hongrang.
What's even more maddening is that news of Hongrang's return will soon spread.
Then the officials, peddlers, sailors, and entire search party
will stop looking for Hongrang.
Now it is just me.
I must find him.
Do not worry, Brother.
I will find Hongrang and expose that imposter for what he is.
I will find Hongrang
and also protect you.
You clearly have a better eye for people than most humans, Goldie.
You would never bark at your own master.
Goldie?
Why? Are you going to claim that you suddenly remember?
- Why Goldie? - You named it.
Was its fur yellower back then?
It must have lost its color due to old age.
But its eyes remain the same.
Clearly, its eyes have faded.
They may look dull but remain sharp.
You should know.
You also changed, Sister.
I am not your sister.
You have no memories, yet you know that I have changed?
I may have no memories, but I can still feel it.
That you were nothing like this, at least.
"Like this"?
Yes. You were not this unlikable before.
Do you think I will leave you be?
Who?
Me? What will you do to me?
After living here for over 20 years, you are still clueless.
I could tell with a simple glance that you are nothing in this household.
There you are.
Yes, Mother. I was just leaving.
I wondered what was taking you so long.
May I ask what kept you?
I thought I would try to converse with the dog.
Since it cannot understand human words, I tried talking through dog noises.
Why would it not answer me?
That's right. When you were younger,
you used to talk to Goldie while you played with it.
Your memories must be returning already!
I simply thought it looked familiar.
I would not be surprised.
You loved that dog so dearly.
We have taken great care of it thus far so you two could reunite.
We should go now. Your father is waiting.
Yes.
I agree, Goldie.
I feel the same way you do.
But you must refrain from biting him,
or else they will kill you.
So, I shall give it my best shot instead.
This street also belongs to the Min Family's Guild,
so make it your duty to patrol it.
Yes.
Goodness, the more you look, the more impressive this all is.
If I had grown up in a house like this,
do you think things would be different?
On second thought…
I would not have met you.
What is with this place?
How befitting.
It is not likely she stashed this away just to eat alone in secret.
Wait.
You have a birthmark behind your ear?
Did your brother have one?
- Let go. I must see it again. - It is a scar.
If you wander without a family or a home,
such scars are inevitable.
Why there, of all places?
As to why or how I got it,
do you want me to tell you how harsh a life I have endured?
Or do you want me to show you…
how I was raised?
Let go. Let go of me.
I said let go!
How dare you touch her.
That is what I should be saying.
Do not ever treat her with such disregard again.
Do not ever
tell me what to do again.
"Brother"?
Indeed. That is what I shall call you
since you will not be here for long.
I need not treat you with such coldness.
Brother.
Thank you for your hard work all these years.
For marking my spot.
I shall pluck you out soon enough, so you need only to stay put.
No need to try to resist.
Do I seem that easy to you?
In 12 years, even a stake can take root.
I see.
So, you intend to stand firm?
I do.
After all, a stake's purpose is to mark one's place.
I could never yield that place to an imposter of no discernible origin.
An imposter?
Are you sure?
Are you all right?
Subtitle translation by: Jimin Choi