Cinderella and Four Knights

Episode 2

Bad boy Ji-woon drops the wad of cash at Ha-won's feet, asking if she's really so desperate for money. As Ha-won stares, Hyun-min picks up a single bill of the fallen cash and shoves it into Ji-woon's pocket, telling him not to mess with "his woman." Ji-woon takes offense at the title and squares off against his cousin, but Hye-ji yells at both of them to knock it off and storms out.

Ji-woon chases after Hye-ji, but Ha-won is hot on his heels. She catches up to him outside, scolding him for treating money so lightly. Ji-woon tries to brush past her, but when she persists, he grabs her and pushes her up against a wall. Caging her in, Ji-woon flatly tells her that he has no interest in anything she has to say and warns her to stay away from his cousin.

His message delivered, Ji-woon moves to leave when all of a sudden Ha-won yanks his arm and flips him around so that this time she's the one pinning him to the wall. Inches away from his face, she delivers her own threat. "You're name is Kang Ji-woon, right? Stop mouthing off about stuff you don't understand. This is my last warning to you. If you ever touch me again, that will be the day you die."

The two stare at each other for a few charged moments before Ji-woon pries her off him and stalks away to find Hye-ji. Well, damn, I think these two might have some chemistry.

As Ha-won leaves, she's stopped by Hyun-min, who can't seem to understand why she's upset. Cutting through his protests, Ha-won pushes Ji-woon's wad of cash into his hands. She then strips off all her borrowed glam and drops all of it into to arms of a stunned Hyun-min.

Ha-won walks off in nothing but her slip and sparkly shoes but stops when she rolls her ankle in the high heels. Yanking off the offending footwear, she chucks one of them back at Hyun-min and continues on. Looking a bit guilty, Hyun-min bends down to pick up the shoe, remarking that it looks like the magic has worn off.

On his bike with Hye-ji sitting behind him, Ji-woon drives by Ha-won as she limps away, sparing the barefoot Cinderella a glance before roaring past.

That night, Hyun-min's bodyguard asks him if he understands that he ruined Grandpa Kang's wedding. Hyun-min smirks, and innocently says that he merely wanted to give his grandfather a present.

Bodyguard Lee responds that Grandpa Kang has prepared a present in return: He's arranged a mat-seon (a date with the intent of marriage) for Hyun-min with the granddaughter of a prominent family. And if Hyun-min wishes to remain heir to Haneul Group, he had better attend.

In the morning, Grandpa Kang smiles as he remembers the moment Ha-won knocked Hyun-min to his knees and forced him to apologize. Turns out he also saw the confrontation between Ha-won and Ji-woon when she yelled at him for treating money so carelessly. Grandpa Kang decides that she is no ordinary girl, and instructs Bodyguard Lee to find out more about her.

Ha-won is already hard at work washing dishes when her Stepmom yawns her way into the kitchen, whining that there's no breakfast ready. Ha-won gathers up her nerve and asks Stepmom for help with paying for her first year of college.

Stepmom pretty much flips out, raging at Ha-won's nerve, asking for the tuition that belongs to her daughter. She accuses Ha-won of hoping that her stepsister, Yoo-na, wouldn't get into college so that she could take the tuition for herself. Ha-won stutters that that isn't the case and she promises the pay the money back through part-time jobs, but Stepmom just tells her to get out.

News stations across the country are busy speculating who Kang Hyun-min's fiancée is, calling her the National Jackpot Girl for landing such a successful man. Even Stepmom and Stepsister are watching it, though they're distracted when Stepmom gets a call from Ha-won's dad. Their faces fall when they hear that he'll be coming back home tomorrow.

Busy at the convenience store with one of her many part-time jobs, Ha-won timidly asks her boss if he could give her an advance on next month's paycheck, which goes as poorly as it did with Stepmom. As Ha-won goes back to her floor mopping, we fade into Bodyguard Lee's report to Grandpa Kang, detailing the life of one Eun Ha-won.

Complete with a video presentation (which includes some frankly stalker-level footage), Bodyguard Lee narrates that Ha-won currently works ten part-time jobs, and while she isn't on her own, she is responsible for herself. Her father is a truck driver who's away working for months at a time and can only afford to send one daughter to college. Ha-won's been working to try and save up for her own tuition.

Grandpa Kang decides that it'll be better to replace his grandsons' butler with a girl like Ha-won, who is mature and closer to their own age, rather than someone who will cater to the boy's every whim.

Ha-won looks over her bank account, sighing about the amount she'd saved for her tuition. With a forced smile, she reassures herself that she can always attend college next fall — she'll just have to work hard for a year to earn another $4,000. Making the decision to use her savings to make sure her mom can rest in peace, she writes an encouraging note on her bankbook, "Let's start again!"

Trying to check her phone for messages from her dad, Ha-won realizes that it's not her phone, which must have been switched at the hotel. Heading over to the hotel, she's stopped by Bodyguard Lee, who informs Ha-won that Grandpa Kang would like to meet her.

Brought before Grandpa Kang, Ha-won apologizes again for her part in disrupting his wedding. He waves it aside but declares that he did do a bit of snooping on her, showing her the book that he knows she reads: a collection of Sun Tzu's teachings (a Chinese general and military strategist). Ha-won admits that her mother had given her the book, telling her that the teachings would help her throughout her life.

Grandpa smiles at that and asks if he can borrow some of her wisdom. Bodyguard Lee steps in then with yet another video presentation, this one detailing a place called Sky House, the architectural marvel where the Kang cousins all live. Lee gives the PC descriptions of each of the boys, referring to Hyun-min as a lover of people, Ji-woon as fierce and untamable, and Seo-woo as the artistic genius. Heh, Grandpa cuts off each flowery portrayal and instead labels his grandsons quite plainly: the player, the thug, and the good-for-nothing.

Grandpa Kang makes his request of Ha-won: He wants her to turn his grandsons into decent human beings. He's vague on the details, but he claims that he's already created a program to reform the boys and all Ha-won has to do is carry it out while living at Sky House for three months. As an incentive, he promises to pay for her college tuition, even offering to send her abroad, saying that he has the power to change her life.

Ha-won is tempted, but she decides to turn down his offer, saying that she's not the right person for this job. The two engage in a brief but awesome verbal battle of Sun Tzu's philosophies. Ha-won gets in the last word and, thanking him for the offer, departs. Bodyguard Lee asks if they really need to go to this much effort for her, but Grandpa says that for him, it takes almost no effort to change one person's life.

As ordered, Hyun-min meets his potential fiancée and turns the charm on high to make her uncomfortable. His tactics don't seem to work as the heiress just looks at the relationship as a business partnership, and isn't backing down.

Hyun-min spies Hye-ji entering the room and, getting an idea, grabs her arm as she passes, pulling the startled Hye-ji in for a hug. He looks regretful for a moment but swoops in to kiss her while his date looks on. The would-be fiancée scoffs and leaves.

After the heiress exits, Hyun-min breaks off the kiss, literally stepping back with his hands up. He gives a quick, "Sorry," and splits while Hye-ji is still in her post-kiss haze, but she quickly catches up to him outside. With his back to her, Hyun-min looks almost remorseful about his actions but then slips his carefree mask back on when she calls his name.