King the Land (2023) K drama with Im Yoon Ah and Lee Jun Ho Episode 6

Episode 6 of King The Land begins with Gu Won worrying as the search for Sa-rang has stopped. He demands a helicopter but is told he needs Hwa-ran’s permission. Sang-sik reminds him he needs power to protect which means putting up a fight. At that moment, Hwa-ran is in the middle of a meeting on their revenue falling in the future as Da-eul’s shop Alanga is a bad investment.

Won barges in and Hwa-ran reminds him that he is just a manager. He petitions to the board and she agrees to…talk about it later. Gu Won heads to the helipad regardless and tells the pilot he will take responsibility. Sang-sik tries to stop him as it is dangerous and wonders what will happen to his job if Gu Won dies. He tells him to step over him if he wants to go and Won tells him to lie down. Sang-sik immediately waves goodbye.

Cut to Won reaching the cliff and jumping to the ledge. Relieved to see him, Sa-rang starts crying and hugs him as she was scared for her life. After he comforts her, she asks how they are getting out and they turn to see that the helicopter has left due to the bad weather. She starts laughing at his rescue operation but he ends up revealing he couldn’t make one as he lost his senses the moment she was in danger.

Both are stunned at his confession but she starts laughing again as Won calls the pilot for help. They are stranded till morning and he vows to protect her, only for him to hide behind her when they hear rustling. They start screaming when they see a strange man.

It turns out to be the farmer who rescues them. He laughs at Won for getting scared who says he was just doing a battle cry. The farmer also tells Sa-rang never to risk her life for a company. After he turns in for the night, Won echoes his sentiments. Sa-rang says it is not up to her as she is a low-level employee and he promises to protect her. 

She is moved and the next day they playfully bicker while trying to sweep the yard. Won’s smile immediately falls when he thinks he has hurt Sa-rang but when he realises she is pretending he plays along and boisterously starts sweeping to entertain her. 

As they leave, the farmer reveals he will be loyal to First Royal Hotel but can hire Sa-rang. On seeing them hold hands, Won gets jealous and snatches her hand. She remembers the ginseng she found and everyone is shocked as it is extremely rare. The farmer changes his mind and promises to supply King Hotel with the best batch. He wraps the ginseng for Sa-rang’s grandmother but Won is sad to hear she doesn’t have parents to give it to. 

On their way down, Sa-rang formally thanks Gu Won for his help. He wants her to be casual but she doesn’t get the hint and bows deeply. However, she is friendly with Sang-sik who arrives in a car. Won wants her to sit with him in the back but she thinks he wants to close the door. He sulks as she sits in the front with Sang-sik, calls him ‘oppa’ and even plans a meal with him.

A frustrated Won offers to drive but it backfires as Sa-rang sits at the back with Sang-sik. They get cakes from a rest stop and Won angrily refuses. Sa-rang tries to feed him and before he can accept, Sang-sik takes it as Won hates being forced. However, this leads to a stomachache and Sang-sik runs off at the next rest stop.

Sa-rang worries and Won is upset she doesn’t do the same for him. She says she can if he tells her his concerns and he brushes it aside. He gives Sang-sik his card and tells him to take a sick leave. In return, he abandons him to drive Sa-rang to her grandmother’s place. 

Meanwhile, Pyeong-hwa is caught between rowdy passengers who want to recruit her as they will get a commission. In the fight, she loses her shoe and Ro-woon finds it for her. He flirts with her and she is confused by it.

Back in the countryside, Sa-rang tells Won to leave but he waits for her outside Grandmother’s restaurant. She ends up working and he peeks at her from the door. Grandmother catches him and on learning he is Sa-rang’s colleague, makes him peel onions. He butchers them whilst crying. Sa-rang is shocked to see him but before he can say much, Grandmother sends them to the market for tofu.

Sa-rang wonders why he is still around and he says it is out of loyalty as they almost died together. The market outing is full of new experiences as Won who hates sweets loves the fishcakes. He tries to play the king carp game and loses 10 times as all he gets is some taffy. With his wallet missing, he asks Sa-rang for one more round. He suddenly holds her and starts acting cute and she laughs as she gives in.

They get super invested and end up winning. They start hugging before getting awkward and taking the king carp. He is delighted but they suddenly fall to the ground when a smoke bomb goes off. She is confused as to why he is holding her and he says he had promised to protect her. The moment is broken when they realise the smoke came from a rice puff machine.

It gets worse when they see that Won’s king carp has broken and he is sad. In the middle of their fun and tears, they forget the reason they had gone to the market – to get tofu. However, Won doesn’t return empty-handed as he gives Grandmother flowers. She makes him gukbap and teaches him how to eat it while Sa-rang watches them. Before they leave, Grandmother packs him food and gives him minimum wage for his work.

He tries to stop her but graciously accepts it and keeps bowing. She is surprised at his lack of worldly knowledge like cutting food or housing subscription but finds him sweet and polite. Back in Seoul, Sa-rang thanks Won for everything. He says she can then treat him to a meal. She agrees and he calls it a date. They smile as she is flustered. 

Won decides to give his father gukbap and he enjoys it. Their bonding session is almost marred as he brings up the helicopter. Won asks if he has even saved a person. Chairman Gu wonders if it has ever been worth it for him but supports Won’s decision. He hopes they can eat together the next time and Won tears up.

As for Sa-rang, she is unpacking when she spots a taffy. She remembers them hugging after winning the game and Won instinctively protecting her from the smoke.

Meanwhile, Alanga’s supervisor orders Da-eul to write the sales report even though she is the one reporting it. She doesn’t care if Da-eul cannot work after hours because of her kid. She also drinks all the staff members’ drinks and then reprimands them for having icey, sweet drinks. Da-eul asks her husband if he can pick up their daughter and he says he is busy. But it turns out that he is just golfing.

At King The Land, the staff is hosting a birthday party for Yu-ri, the youngest of the First Royal Hotel. Won enters with Sang-sik holding a huge present and he smiles at Sa-rang who returns it. However, Sang-sik suddenly gets a call and hands the present to her. She follows Won and observes Yu-ri fawning over him.

He turns to take the gift and is surprised to see Sa-rang. He is further confused as to why she looks upset. He asks her but she brushes it off. He keeps looking for her as she walks off while Yu-ri tries to get him to date her. She says their parents have mostly arranged their marriage but Won tells her to date someone who likes her back.

Meanwhile, a grumpy Sa-rang clocks off and as she is leaving, Sang-sik spots her. He asks about a movie date and she rants why people call an outing a date if they don’t even like the other person. She walks off and he wonders why she got mad as he didn’t ask her out but was wondering if she had a date.

As she drinks with Pyeong-hwa and Da-eul, Sa-rang thinks Yu-ri is Won’s girlfriend. She is also upset by his mixed signals as he always picks on her when she smiles and then asks why she looks upset when she doesn’t smile. Drinking with the girls turns into karaoke night and they order several dishes. When it is Sa-rang’s turn to open the door, she is shocked to see Won who smiles on seeing her.

The Episode Review

Even during a heavy scene, King The Land keeps it light with Sang-sik and Gu Won bantering. If there is one thing we can count on is the comedic timing of all the characters. And Won is so in love, even Sa-rang’s teasing doesn’t linger for long as his excuse for not having a proper rescue plan is so romantic. If she doesn’t understand his feelings even then, then she is as dense as a K-drama lead in a rom-com, oh wait that she is. 

And while it has been fun seeing Gu Won pine after her, it is about time we get Sa-rang’s point of view. Episode 6 of King The Land gives us glimpses as she constantly catches herself when she gets lost in the moment whether it is hugging Won in the market or watching him with Grandmother. It will be funny to see when Won realises that she is jealous because she saw him with another girl.