The Secret Romantic Guesthouse (2023) Episode 9-10

As promised, San reveals himself to Dan-oh as Lee Seol, and this time we’re given flashbacks that confirm he’s telling the truth. Plus, he has that red mole on his ankle (which is bound to cause trouble later considering Ban-ya saw it and she’s posing as Dan-oh’s friend while spying for Tae-hwa).

The reveal of Lee Seol’s identity may have been surprising to us, but it’s earth-shattering to Dan-oh. Her intense mix of emotions range from relief that the boy she saved back then stayed safe all these years to remorse at having drawn him out of hiding and terror that she might be forced to expose him through torture or threats.

There’s also the fear of what could happen to him when he enters the palace guard, but San won’t be dissuaded from that. Just as Dan-oh defended Ihwawon, he needs to defend his country from its tyrannical king. And to do that, he plans to get as close to the king as he can and strike from within.

As plans go, “get close to the king” turns out to be pretty easy. Maybe the king subconsciously senses their familial connection, or maybe he just likes San’s nerve, but either way, as San continues to distinguish himself during initiation, the king’s interest in him only grows. When the king challenges San to a sparring match (with real swords, of course), San doesn’t back down. But the king doesn’t punish him for winning — instead he laughs, delighted that for once his opponent didn’t just let him win.

But even while San continues earning the king’s apparent favor, the king lays a trap of his own for Lee Seol, unaware that Lee Seol is right under his nose. Having learned of Dan-oh’s childhood meeting with the prince, he summons Dan-oh to question her — er, attempt to choke answers out of her, rather — himself.

San watches in horror, torn between protecting his plan and saving Dan-oh’s life, but thankfully the king decides to let her live on his own. Her father was his old teacher, after all, and anyway he knows Lee Seol will seek out his lifesaver eventually. So the king keeps Dan-oh close, summoning her at random times to talk and play games with him.

Meanwhile, Minister Shin sets his own plan into motion. Yoo-ha, it turns out, is the illegitimate son of the deposed crown prince. That makes him Lee Seol’s (San’s) half-brother, Lee Gyeom, though he’s lived his whole life unaware of his true lineage.

Minister Shin baits Yoo-ha with the promise of building a new, more equitable world before dropping the real bombshell: they want him to take the throne as Lee Seol. People are dying by the day, and they can’t afford to delay any longer looking for a lost prince who may or may not appear. No one will commit treason for an illegitimate prince, but they will rally behind Lee Seol, and Yoo-ha has enough key family heirlooms to prove he’s of royal blood.

Despite his reluctance, Yoo-ha eventually agrees to take up the false identity, believing it’s for the greater good. He still wants to meet his half-brother, though, and claims he has no intention of fighting the real Lee Seol for the throne if it should ever come to that. And for his sake, I really hope that’s true.

As for our third — and most mysterious — Flower Scholar, Shi-yeol spends a lot of this week with Hong-joo, who has decided to return to Ihwawon after all. When she asks why Shi-yeol never pries into her past, he says thoughtfully and sadly that he has a past of his own he doesn’t want people asking about. One that’s kept him from living a life of his own choosing.

Hong-joo wants to do more to help Dan-oh instead of feeling like a burden, so she dresses as a (male) scholar, and she and Shi-yeol go out drinking to loudly talk about Ihwawon in hopes of drumming up new business. I’m not sure which hurts more — the memories we see of Hong-joo blissfully in love with her now-deceased fiancé, or the looks Shi-yeol gives her that suggest he’s falling head-over-heels while knowing exactly what happened to said fiancé.

As danger looms ever closer, Dan-oh’s worries mount. One night, after drinking with Hong-joo, she waits up outside San’s room until he comes home. He’s all set to assuage her fears once again, until she launches into the list of everything that keeps her up at night, and his name doesn’t even come up until the end. And this time it’s not his proximity to danger that’s causing her problems — it’s his face.

It took the help of an erotica book and him calling her “his person” for her to notice, but she can no longer deny her growing feelings for him. Knowing what to do with those feelings, however, is another matter. Having vented her frustrations, she leans over to plant a kiss on his cheek, then sinks down and falls asleep on his shoulder.

But there’s more trouble brewing: Tae-hwa’s second-in-command has been tipped off about San’s identity. He lures San into an ambush, scoffing at San’s warning that learning San’s true identity is equivalent to a death sentence. Right on cue, the red-sleeved Watchman arrives and kills every single one of San’s assailants, so San doesn’t even have to raise his sword.

When it’s over, San orders the Watchman to remove his mask. The Watchman obeys, kneeling before his prince, and San’s eyes widen in shock. It’s Shi-yeol.

Of course it’s Shi-yeol! Aside from the Watchman being the next logical guess for his identity when he was revealed not to be Lee Seol, Shi-yeol has always been lurking in the background and keeping, well, watch over San: treating his wound, hanging out in his room uninvited, straightening his robes, nagging at him to get rid of that prophecy book so he wouldn’t get caught with it. He even acted as a decoy Lee Seol — and he did it so well he fooled not only Tae-hwa, but also us for several episodes.

Fun and exciting as the guessing game was (and it sure was fun!), the tradeoff was that we couldn’t get a proper peek into our Flower Scholars’ motivations or even their inner thoughts. Now that we know who they are, though, we can really start delving into what drives them and what each of them plans to do next. Like San infiltrating the king’s inner circles, and Yoo-ha’s morality and identity crises. And Shi-yeol’s hints that life as the Watchman may not be something he chose or even wants for himself.

Things are about to get very complicated and dangerous for everyone, so I’m glad we’ve gotten clear on who’s who first, before diving headlong into the inevitable struggle amongst (at least) three contenders for the throne. Bring on the revolution!