Synopsis

Set during the early Joseon Dynasty, the film begins with the queen mother in a precarious position of having no blood ties to the childless king. She schemes to replace him on the throne with her submissive young son Seong-won, but the timid prince falls in love at first sight with Hwa-yeon, an aristocrat's daughter, who has already found love with Kwon-yoo, a commoner. When her father decides to send her to the royal palace as a concubine, the two lovers try to elope but are caught. She only gives in to parental demands in return for his life. Five years later, Hwa-yeon has become the queen after producing a male heir, which infuriates the queen mother and breaks the hearts of both Prince Seong-won and Kwon-yoo, who later joins the royal palace as a eunuch for the queen mother's brother and nemesis. As the queen mother grows desperate, Hwa-yeon gradually becomes monstrously ambitious, using everyone around her, including Kwon-yoo and now-King Seong-won as tools for her own survival.

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