The Story of Park's Marriage Contract (2023) Episode 5

Episode 5 of The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract begins with Yeon-woo and Tae-ha falling down the hill together. The latter wakes up and carries Yeon-woo back. Sa-wol is shocked, especially when she sees them, and helps get her comfortable. However, Sa-wol is also suspicious over what Tae-ha may have done to “her lady”.

When Hong and Sa-wol speak in the lounge, they’re shocked when Min Hye-suk returns home. She’s suspicious of something awry but the pair hide behind the couch. Hong can’t stop staring at the maid, and he finds his heart beating fast as a result.

As for Hye-suk, she continues to try and undermine Tae-ha, even going so far as organizing a meeting with all the board members to try to persuade them to play ball and join her to undermine Tae-ha. That is, until the Chairman shows up and speaks his piece and defends himself.

Yeon-woo awakens and the pair help patch up each other’s wounds. Eventually she falls back asleep but when she awakens a second time, Sa-wol is there watching over her. More importantly, Yeon-woo s convinced that she’s found a way to get back home. While Yeon-woo believes it’s finding the Guardian Angel again, Sa-wol is a little more naughty! She thinks that Yeon-woo needs to engage in her first night with Tae-ha and properly get married so they can tie the knot.

The Chairman shows up to see Tae-ha and encourages him to send Yeon-woo back home again. If he wants to be the owner of SH then he needs to be ready to take the reigns, and keeping Yeon-woo here is just going to make her suffer.

Before he does this though, Tae-ha heads off to investigate more of Yeon-woo’s parentage. Specifically, that involving Park Jae-won. His father, Park Hyeon, was also a famous scholar at the time. They haven’t done too much research into Yeon-woo given there’s not much information on her.

Jae-won’s estate used to be called Howondang, which hapens to be the same area where that swimming pool at the hotel was. Hong is also fascinated by that suddenly blossoming tree, which didn’t have any flowers the day before. Hong has also figured out that Sa-wol is from the Joseon period too.

Tae-ha is determined to figure this situation out himself, and that’s not to the Chairman’s liking when he refuses to do as his grandfather wishes. While he stews, Tae-ha admits to Yeon-woo that he believes her when she says she’s from the Joseon period. For now, he agrees to his promise to help her get home and doesn’t want to break that at all.

As for Yeon-woo, Sa-wol’s original idea for her to have a steamy night with her husband starts to affect her. She eventually heads off to her room to pray. At the same time, word of Tae-ha’s marriage spreads across the office like wildfire. This undermines Tae-min, who shows up to his first day at work, but it also undermines Tae-ha too, as he realizes the news has been “leaked” by Hye-suk.

She intends to unsettle and show him to be a “shameless” deputy CEO, using public opinion in her favour. Even worse, pictures are snapped of Tae-ha and Yeon-woo out and about in public.

The next day, Yeon-woo surprises Tae-ha by using her embroidery skills to patch up his shirt, sewing in some butterflies onto the shirt. He’s impressed by her skills and can’t stop smiling as he wears the shirt to work. Unfortunately, those smiles disappear when he arrives in the main atrium, hounded by reporters that want all the details about the marriage. Those pictures of Yeon-woo have been leaked so it’s only a matter of time before people are going to know who she is.

When Yeon-woo and Sa-wol show up at the department store, reporters get a tip over who she is and surround Yeon-woo, snapping pictures relentlessly. Tae-min is there too and he grabs her, donning a disguise of his own and taking off around the store. When they’re alone, he reprimands her and tells her to go home. He also gives her a way out the building without being spotted by anyone.

Only, she spies Tae-ha heading off with that kind woman we saw Hye-suk try to bribe at the end of the last episode. This actually happens to be Yeon-woo’s mum, Lee Mi-Dam, from the Joseon period. She’s the head of a company called Midam. They make clothes and after hearing his proposal, CEO Lee rejects the offer. She doesn’t trust the company not to tarnish her reputation.

As Tae-ha bows, Mi-dam notices the embroidery on Tae-ha’s shirt. When she does, Yeon-woo suddenly approaches and embraces Mi-dam, sobbing and calling her mother.

While this is going on, the Chairman shows up just after ready for the big board meeting about to take place. With the PR of the company in complete uproar, Tae-ha shows to explain himself and try to sort out this chaos.

The Chairman puts his foot down and points out that his marriage isn’t as problematic as the papers say. When the Chairman tries to discuss Mi-dam, Hye-suk slithers in and claims that the deal has fallen through. Or has it? Mi-dam shows and decides to team up after all and that comes from Yeon-woo’s embroidery skills.

Hong hands over the silver trinket that belongs to her, the one that was soaked in blood from the night with her husband. As she holds it, one of the flowers falls from the vase over in the bedroom. And even worse, Tae-ha collapses holding his chest.

The Episode Review

So it appears that whatever is going on here, could well be harking back to the Joseon Period and showing we have a time period for Tae-ha and Yeon-woo’s love to blossom.. or wither and die. This adds an extra element of urgency to the story, whilst also giving up some more crucial hooks for the future.

We have the drama involving Sa-wol and Hong too, which could also spark into a romance of its own, while the mystery is enough to keep things interesting across the run-time. Hopefully we get some answers soon though!