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tvN's historical drama The Queen Who Crowns (Korean: 원경) premiered episodes 7 and 8 on January 27 and 28, with new episodes airing weekly on Mondays and Tuesdays. The series, streaming on TVING and Viki, features a talented cast including Cha Joo-young, Lee Hyun-wook, Lee Yi-dam, and Lee Si-a.
Set during the early Joseon dynasty, The Queen Who Crowns follows the journey of Queen Wongyeong (played by Cha Joo-young), who marries Yi Bang-won (Lee Hyun-wook), the man destined to become King Taejong.
The Queen Who Crowns episodes 7 & 8 recaps: Wongyeong thwarts conspiracies, secures the housing crisis
Episode 7 begins with the eldest son of King Taejong and Queen Wongyeong being coronated as the crown prince. However, having been raised under the care of Wongyeong's brothers, he is closer to the Min family—Wongyeong’s paternal side, which Taejong seeks to distance from power.
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Taejong becomes enraged when he sees Wongyeong’s brothers gifting the crown prince an expensive falcon hunting device. Understanding the situation, Wongyeong asks her brothers against giving such gifts and advises them to maintain their distance.
Meanwhile, in the episode of The Queen Who Crowns, a housing crisis emerges as the powerful and wealthy ministers settling in Hanyang purchase vast amounts of land, causing property prices to soar. As a result, many people become homeless, and influential ministers exploit the situation by taking them in as slaves.
Taejong learns that Wongyeong’s brothers are among the culprits and orders Yi Sook-beon to investigate. However, one of the brothers discovers the probe and attacks Yi Sook-beon in the middle of the road, leading to a scuffle until royal secretary Ha Ryun intervenes.
At the same time, the Ming dynasty’s envoy demands 50 tribute brides as a token of trust. This contradicts one of Taejong’s key proclamations upon ascending the throne, which banned the practice of sending tribute brides to China.
When Wongyeong hears of this, she confronts Taejong and reminds him of his promise. He insists there is no alternative, but she asks for a chance to resolve the matter herself. Despite opposition from the court, Taejong grants her permission.
Wongyeong soon discovers a connection between the Ming envoy and the father of Taejong’s new concubine, Kwon Seon. Leveraging this link, she successfully negotiates a resolution and sends the Ming ambassador back without the tribute brides. This outcome surprises Taejong and further fuels his insecurity about the queen’s growing influence.
Later in the episode of The Queen Who Crowns, Wongyeong meets with her brother to discuss the housing crisis and his altercation with Yi Sook-beon. She informs him that she will ask the king to punish them.
Her brother, furious, justifies their actions by arguing that they provided shelter to those who had nowhere else to go. However, Wongyeong stands firm in her decision, leading to a heated dispute between them.
Wongyeong then visits Taejong but refuses to see him in person, speaking to him from outside his door. She demands to know what he promised Seong-gye in order to bring him back to the palace.
After a moment of contemplation, Taejong admits that he pledged to remove anyone who stood in the way of his and Seong-gye’s vision for Korea. Wongyeong then asks whether that includes the crown prince or her family.
Taejong declares that if necessary, he will eliminate them as well. This leaves Wongyeong in despair as she recalls Seong-gye’s accusation that she views the kingdom as belonging solely to the Min family.
The following morning in the episode of The Queen Who Crowns, Wongyeong summons her brothers and informs them that she will sever ties with the Min family, as she cannot be both queen and their ally. Her brothers, feeling betrayed, decide to take matters into their own hands.
They orchestrate a scheme, rallying a faction of the royal army loyal to the Min family and presenting themselves before Taejong, demanding that Min Mu-jil be appointed as the Right Army Commander. Taejong, furious, challenges the leader of the faction to choose between loyalty to him or Min Mu-jil. Faced with the ultimatum, the army disarms and kneels before Taejong.
The next day, however, Taejong stuns the court by summoning the crown prince and announcing his decision to abdicate the throne in favor of his son. Wongyeong rushes to the court and, along with the ministers, pleads with Taejong to reconsider, but he remains unmoved and leaves the chamber.
Meanwhile, in the episode of The Queen Who Crowns, Wongyeong’s brothers celebrate the development and gather like-minded supporters to strategize about placing the crown prince on the throne once Taejong steps down. Learning of this, Taejong orders Yi Sook-beon to infiltrate their gathering and compile a list of those siding with the Min family.
Determined to prevent Taejong from abdicating, Wongyeong intercepts the royal seal that Taejong had sent to the crown prince’s quarters. She then visits Taejong with the crown prince and begs him once more to change his mind.
When he refuses, she warns him that his decision will put both her and the crown prince in danger, ultimately forcing him to wield his sword against them. She then demands that instead of transferring the throne, he use his seal to approve an upcoming sericulture event she is organizing.
She further announces that she will be taking the crown prince to her parent's home to protect him. Finally, she gives Taejong an ultimatum—either grant his seal for the event and revoke his decision to abdicate, or she will establish a faction to dethrone him herself.
The next morning in The Queen Who Crowns, Wongyeong urges her brothers to take responsibility for their actions and accept the consequences. Pan-su visits her, revealing that a royal relative has been conspiring with a woman named Kim of Bamgol, amassing great wealth by buying and selling land. In the midst of their conversation, a messenger arrives with news—Taejong has approved her sericulture event proposal.
As Wongyeong returns to the palace, Taejong visits and confronts her, accusing her of abandoning him. She insists that she never has and promises to remove her brothers from their military positions.
But Taejong presses further, questioning whether she is willing to remove all corrupt relatives on both sides. Wongyeong is left speechless and on this note The Queen Who Crowns episode 7 ends.
Episode 8 of The Queen Who Crowns begins with Taejong summoning the commerce minister and ordering an investigation into the housing crisis. Min Mu-jil, Wongyeong’s brother, then steps forward to seek the king’s forgiveness for his past actions and voluntarily resigns from his military position.
On the other hand, in episode 8 of The Queen Who Crowns, Wongyeong visits Kim of Bamgol to discuss the housing issue. Kim, boasting about her nationwide influence, proves her reach by having Min Mu-gu visit her house.
Enraged, Wongyeong scolds Mu-gu. He defends himself, saying that they gave up all royal positions and freed their slaves as she requested, but he still needs to secure the family’s financial future.
Disheartened, Wongyeong leaves but on the way notices the king’s court lady emerging from a recently sold house. Suspicious, she summons the court lady for questioning. However, the court lady denies any involvement with the house or knowledge of the matter.
Wongyeong refuses to believe her and warns her to bring the king to her that night. With no alternative, the court lady lies to Taejong, telling him that Chae-ryeong, whom he is supposed to visit that night, is unwell. She then informs him that the queen has requested his presence instead.
That night in the episode of The Queen Who Crowns, Taejong visits Wongyeong, and they discuss her plan to meet with the displaced citizens who have lost their homes. Meanwhile, Chae-ryeong learns that Taejong was misled and, furious, rushes to where the king and queen are.
She approaches Taejong, offering to serve him, but he dismisses her, and she is escorted away. On her way back, she visits Kwon Seon and proposes that they join forces against Wongyeong.
Meanwhile in the episode of The Queen Who Crowns, Kim of Bamgol and the royal relative conspire to weaken Wongyeong’s influence. They devise a scheme to trap Min Mu-gu into purchasing a house at a low price and reselling it for massive profit. Their plan is to expose this during the queen’s upcoming sericulture ceremony.
However, on the morning of the ceremony, Pan-su informs Wongyeong of the scheme. Acting swiftly, she warns Min Mu-gu about the impending trap.
Then in the episode of The Queen Who Crowns, the ceremony begins with the traditional offerings to the gods. As the king and queen take their seats, the crown prince recites the ceremonial words.
At this moment, the royal relative steps forward and accuses a minister of profiting from real estate dealings, then turns to Min Mu-gu. As planned, Mu-gu steps forward and admits to purchasing the house. However, he then surprises everyone by offering that property, along with several others he owns, to the king for distribution among the homeless.
Inspired by his gesture, the ministers—one by one—begin offering their properties as well. The unexpected turn of events shocks both the royal relative and Kim of Bamgol, who is among the audience and attempts to slip away. Wongyeong seizes the moment and directly questions the royal relative about his own properties. Cornered, he has no choice but to offer them as well.
Initially, Taejong looks at Wongyeong with pride but quickly turns away, visibly unsettled. Later, he privately asked his royal secretary about the way the queen handled the situation.
The secretary responds that she resolved it like a true ruler. That night, Chae-ryeong also speaks to Taejong about how Wongyeong behaves like a king. Meanwhile, Kim of Bamgol is arrested, as the royal relative, Yi Sook-beon, and the royal secretary all refuse to support or acknowledge her.
The following morning in the episode of The Queen Who Crowns, at court, Taejong announces Min Mu-jil as the new Inspector General and tasks him with investigating the powerful ministers. He then declares the crown prince’s marriage plans and allows candidates to be presented.
Yi Sook-beon puts forth his daughter’s name, and when Wongyeong sees that the list contains only one candidate, she refuses to accept it. She demands that the list be revised and announces a competition—each candidate must weave her own cotton fabric to be considered for the role of the crown prince’s bride. On this note episode 8 of The Queen Who Crowns concludes.
Episodes 9 and 10 of The Queen Who Crowns are set to air on tvN on February 3 and 4 at 8:50 PM KST. Viewers can also stream these episodes of The Queen Who Crowns on TVING and Viki.
