King's Affection Kdrama Review | Episode 3&4 Explained

The King's Affection, a historical k-drama reflecting on a story of a crown prince being a female and a tragic history behind the swap that took place in the palace between twins, one is a maid and another crown prince.

Episode 1&2 Overview

Queen with her daughter in prince's robe

The story revolves around a tragic night when the Queen was in labor and gave birth to twins, one girl and one boy that was a sin for a girl who was born with the royal prince. Queen wanted different things, she wanted to help and save both her children and did so. But later, during the swap time, when the crown prince was out in her twin sister's maid to look, he was hunted down by a man who works under the queen's father. He was against the survival of the girl's birth and demanded her to be killed. Although the maid, the man was looking for wasn't her, and got killed due to the look-alike appearance. Since then the girl is the crown prince now.

Their childhood

Lee Hwi 

Now, moving ahead talking about the romance and encounter of the two started when Lee-Hwi and Jung Ji Woon met. When they both were small and Lee Hwi was maid they both met and started liking each other and decided to meet at the bridge until the tragic murder happened with the crown prince while they were still in the swap. Ji-Woon waited for her but she didn't show up. Many years went by and Lee Hwi is now the crown prince hiding her sexuality.

Episode 3&4 is all about how they both made to face each other despite all the trying and warnings of not showing face to one another.

How did they meet again in their adulthood?

First encounter after many years

Crown prince was on the royal hunting with her( use her as she is 'she') uncle and hyungs. One of her uncles, who started showing some curiosity as to why the prince looks so much feminine, and that uncle even tried to shoot her while hunting a deer down and that is when the arrow hit on the hair that was tied up above.

Her hair opened up and fell and her uncle witnessed the whole thing and she looked totally like a woman. He found it very strange and started to suspect her. For hiding from her uncle and to fix her robe she went inside the forest near a pond, where she heard a sudden noise of a wood crack. She held out a knife and throw it at the person who was secretly sneaking up on her.

The person was Jung Ji Woon, who was in the forest to collect a herb that can heal acne for an elite customer who was keeping Ji Woon's friend on bait. The sneaking up on her was unintentional as he tries to explain her. During their conversation, Lee Hwi's uncle came near the pond and they ran to escape, which other royal soldiers saw them both running and went after them.

As Lee Hwi was in the female outlook no one could recognize her. While running they came to an end at the peak of a hill where under there was a lake and they jumped off the cliff. During their encounter, they both were unaware of each others' identities.

Lee Hyun's affection for Lee Hwi

Lee Hyun and Lee Hwi

Back in the palace when Lee Hwi returned to the ground she was attacked by an assassin where she was saved by Lee Hyun. Later we came to know that Lee Hyun has some kind of feelings for her, who could resist her beautiful face in a man's robe.

Lee Hyun even gt her the ring she liked while they were out in the market with Eunuch Hong and saved her from getting splashed by water. The affection for the crown prince can be seen while he saved her from the water by taking her into his arms and turning himself in the way of the water.

As for Jung Ji Woon and Lee Hwi, when she founds out that Ji Woon was the boy from her childhood she started avoiding her but fate was saying something else. Ji Woon ended up being her side as Royal Tutor. She was annoyed by the fact and was worried about her identity to be revealed if Ji Woon recognize her.

How did Ji Woon ended up being by her side even in the palace?

Jung Ji Woon as Royal Scholar

Ji Woon is the son of the royal inspector who works under Left State Councillor, the one who demanded the twin sister to be killed and ended up killing the crown prince. Since the day when Ji Woon saw his dad kill an innocent girl he was disappointed in his father and stopped seeing him.

But when his father asked him to be on his majesty's side,i.e, crown prince, he refused as to never deal with the royal family. Unfortunately, he could not resist his request and his father has enough power to make him agree and took Ji Woon's friends as bait. He ended up being a royal scholar of the Crown prince.

Didn't know that the torture would be real by the crown prince. Other scholars in his office also warned him but Ji Woon still managed to complete all the hard tasks given by her. Lee Hwi thought if she made him do struggle he might leave his job, but little did she know that his friends were in danger if he leave his job before Ming's would visit.

Do Lee Hwi still have feelings for Ji Woon?

Ji Woon tying Lee Hwi's hat 

Lee Hwi made him do all sorts of hard things and even agree on a test that was to be held so that Ji Woon could keep his job. Lee Hwi wanted him to leave but he could not, so he came with the idea of an exam that would be held in front of everyone in the palace.

For her test, he gave her lotus seeds and asked for the meaning behind them. While doing so she came to see the cloth that was given by him when they were small and how he gave her a name related to a lotus. On the day of her exam, she gave an upright answer that everyone liked but it was wrong and so Ji Woon explained the beautiful meaning of it.

Lee Hwi failed and Ji Woon gets to keep his job. In the ending when that water splash incident happened, her hat was ruined while Lee Hyun saved her, Lee Hyun asked her to stay where they were and Ji Woon notice her standing with her ruined hat which he gave his own to wear. Lee Hwi got all embarrassed as his fingers touched her cheeks while he was tying the hat for her. We all know that she still has feelings for her even though she decided to kill him if he ever recognizes her.

Overall the episodes were worth watching and, if your genre is historical, then go for it and encounter their romance and suspense of how her identity will reveal. Also, the handsome graphics, and rich colors used in the drama, are just alluring.