Ji Hyun-woo's heartfelt "tearful speech," unleashed to break down Yujin's ironclad prevention of the special law, delivered a stirring thrill that moved the heart.
The 8th episode of MBN's Wednesday-Thursday miniseries "First Lady" (writer Kim Hyung-wan, director Lee Ho-hyun, produced by Studio Gidam, Artist Studio, Roadshow Plus) broadcast on the 16th (Wed) recorded a nationwide rating of 1.9% according to Nielsen Korea, with a peak minute rating of 2.2%.
First, Cha Soo-yeon (played by Yujin) tried to block the special law by dredging up her most tragic wound, the "illegitimate child scandal," and in response Hyun Min-chul (played by Ji Hyun-woo) exploded in furious anger, asking, "What on earth are you hiding? What truth are you more afraid of than an illegitimate child?"
At the same time, Shin Hae-rin (played by Lee Min-young) confronted Cha Soo-yeon's lawyer Kang Sun-ho (played by Kang Seung-ho) at the police station, and when Kang criticized Shin for leaking the school violence video of Hyun Ji-yoo (played by Park Seo-kyung), she said, "I'm not going to avoid it. If you've committed a crime, you must be punished," which puzzled Kang. Kang then rebuked her, saying, "Didn't you start in politics to correct wrongs? I don't understand committing illegal acts in the name of supporting the candidate," and Shin Hae-rin replied, "It's not for the candidate," adding, "What I want is the truth. Like Do Tae-hoon, who was wrongly accused as an arsonist even in death," which made Kang focus. Finally Shin Hae-rin said, "If you really want revenge, the answer is not a divorce suit but a special law," and then shocked Kang by asking him to steal the recording tape and accounting ledgers that Cha Soo-yeon possessed.
Meanwhile, when the "Do Tae-hoon special law" faced collapse because the Peace and Liberty Party changed its party stance a day before the vote, Shin Hae-rin barged into Hyun Min-chul's office at the transition committee without warning. Facing Hyun Min-chul, Shin Hae-rin declared firmly, "I will pass the special law. I'm not asking for help. I'm telling you not to interfere," and emphasized that Hyun Min-chul's divorce suit was for the special law, not for Cha Soo-yeon. She raised her voice, saying, "If the woman who has been blocking the special law is a sinner, let her be punished. Only then can Do Tae-hoon's innocence be revealed." When Hyun Min-chul hesitated, Shin warned coldly, "Don't block the special law claiming to protect her. Don't stop me," and Hyun Min-chul revealed that Cha Soo-yeon had threatened to expose the affair. In particular, Shin Hae-rin aroused curiosity by stressing to Hyun Min-chul, who asked for more time, that she had no time left.
Meanwhile Kang Sun-ho got information from Lee Hwa-jin about a safe hidden in Cha Soo-yeon's home dress room, and eventually opened the safe and swept up the recording tapes, well-worn accounting ledgers and notebooks that Cha Soo-yeon had kept. But after stealing Cha's compromising materials, Kang called Shin Hae-rin and fell into conflict, and following advice from Yoon Ki-ju (played by Kim Ki-bang), he showed the tapes and accounting ledgers he had stolen to Hyun Min-chul. To Hyun Min-chul's question, "Why me and not Secretary Shin?" Yoon Ki-ju said he was thinking from Do Tae-hoon's perspective and that he would be fooled once more by Hyun Min-chul, but Kang still showed distrust toward Hyun Min-chul.
When Hyun Min-chul returned to the transition committee with Cha Soo-yeon's compromising materials, Shin Hae-rin, waiting in front of the transition committee, demanded the materials, insisting, "Now is not the time to pick and choose methods." To Hyun Min-chul's question, "If you insist on legitimate methods, will you expose the weakness?" Shin Hae-rin replied, "So I'm saying I'll do it. Pretend you don't know," which made Hyun Min-chul show a sense of self-reproach, saying, "So that's what kind of person I was. The kind who shifts responsibility to you."
In the end Shin Hae-rin brought up her husband's story and pleaded, "For the past 20 years I have served the candidate and dragged him to the presidential seat. Do what a president should do. Leave this to me one last time. This is my matter," saying she would use the compromising materials. But Hyun Min-chul resolutely turned away with a sigh, saying, "Secretary Shin's 20 years, those 20 years for me. I wanted my gratitude to be my final feeling," and Shin Hae-rin cried out in grief toward Hyun Min-chul's retreating back.
Later, haunted all night by Shin Hae-rin's advice, Cha Soo-yeon's persuasion and Yoon Ki-ju's faith, Hyun Min-chul, conflicted over the Do Tae-hoon special law, moved to the National Assembly ahead of the vote. But his arrival was stalled in the middle of the road by a plot from H Group's Yang Hoon (played by Lee Si-gang) to prevent him from reaching the Assembly. With only about 10 minutes left before the vote, Hyun Min-chul arrived at the Assembly on a police motorcycle, and contrary to expectations, he first went to the Peace and Liberty Party meeting room, dumped the recording tapes and accounting ledgers on the floor and revealed, "These are the inheritance Cha Jin-taek left his wife," provoking backlash from the Peace and Liberty Party members. Hyun Min-chul pleaded earnestly, promising not to use the materials as leverage and asking, "Please vote based on each lawmaker's individual choice, not the party stance. Put a single person's name on the line."
The discovery of an empty safe where the compromising materials had been left shocked Cha Soo-yeon, and the contrast with Hyun Min-chul's tearful speech pleading, "We must find out why Tae-hoon had to die like that 15 years ago, why the truth of that day is being suppressed, and what happened that day," created a juxtaposition that exploded curiosity about the special law vote result.
Viewers reacted, "At the ending, a single tear of Ji Hyun-woo's determination makes my heart ache. So moving today," "This drama is telling how important it is to be born human and live like a human!", "I think many people should watch this drama. The more you watch, the more weighty the themes and messages are!" and other responses poured in.
Meanwhile, the 9th episode of MBN's Wednesday-Thursday miniseries "First Lady" will air on the 22nd (Wed) at 10:20 p.m.
[OSEN]