Mayor Choi enters the VIP room and sees that Chang-ho and Ji-hoon are conferring with Big Mouse. Mayor Choi is surprised to see that the same clients are being discussed by Chang-ho and Ji-hoon. The three VIPs in the room are also shocked to see that their names are on the same piece of paper as Big Mouse’s top 5 clients.
Chang-ho is taken to see the prosecutor. Peter Hong has been caught and is in custody. The prosecutor wants to know if Chang-ho was involved in the theft. Chang-ho denies any involvement and says he will return the money if Ji-hoon can provide proof. Ji-hoon says he will get the proof from Peter Hong. ..
Peter Hong tells the prosecutor how he got caught in financial fraud and how he was about to end his life when he received a phone call from someone who wanted to invest. Peter invested increasingly large amounts of money for this person, got his life on track and soon became the manager of the NR Forum’s private fund. But he blinked and the money was gone, stolen by Big Mouse.
Peter did meet Big Mouse once, but he never saw his face. The prosecutor tells him to lie, say that he did and identify him as Chang-ho. He is scared but agrees to do so.
As Ji-hoon and Mayor Choi watch, Chang-ho is brought to the interrogation room. Peter Hong is asked if Chang-ho is Big Mouse but an alarm rings, signalling it is time for his insulin shot. He takes it but suddenly collapses and dies.
As his body is taken out, Ji-hoon wonders about Chang-ho’s wife and if she really has Professor Seo’s paper.
Meanwhile, at Gucheon University Hospital the nurses discuss the volunteering program at Gucheon Penitentiary on the coming Sunday. As Mi-ho leaves, she spots the woman related to the patient in 701, Kim Kyung-sook. She is watching something on the lobby’s TV, featuring Hyun Joo-hee. She remembers the late Professor Seo asking her to design a necklace pendant that could fit in a small data card, preferably a cross. On TV, Joo-hee is seen wearing a cross necklace. Mi-ho approaches her but she rushes away.
Mi-ho then gets a call from Ji-hoon. They meet at a restaurant where Ji-hoon says he wants to buy Professor Seo’s paper. Mi-ho says it’s more useful if she keeps it. He tries rattling her but it doesn’t work. Afterwards, Mi-ho calls Mayor Choi and thanks him for giving Chang-ho the names. He doesn’t tell her the truth.
Mi-ho’s father and Soon-tae are questioning Professor Seo’s life and his relationship with his wife. They find out that he was on bad terms with her and was a loner in general. They also find photos of him on a fishing trip taken by someone else. They inquire about the relationship and find out that he was having an affair with a woman.
Jerry is handing out the winning cards from the bet Yang Chun-sik made with Big Mouse. It is revealed that Yang Chun-sik placed a bet of 50 cards on Big Mouse. ..
In the warden’s office, Big Mouse hands Chang-ho suitcases full of cash. Chang-ho owes Big Mouse 300 million won. The warden takes his cut and Chang-ho gives him some more for extra privileges and a party for the penitentiary. As Big Mouse enters a cafeteria full of enjoying inmates, they cheer for him. Even Chairman Yang gives him his approval.
The three men in the VIP room are panicking. Chang-ho enters and tells them to confess at the trial or be killed in prison. ..
Later, in the courtyard, Chang-ho takes his seat and a huge sheet is hung up behind him. It has the words ‘confessional bible’ as well as Big Mouse’s symbol. He later enters the Church and seems to pray.
In the VIP room, Lee Doo-geun is drinking wine and seems to fall unconscious. He wakes up (still in a daze) to see Chang-ho holding his beating heart, which in reality is a scrap of cloth from his t-shirt. Jung Chae-bong receives similar treatment and is given an electric shock in the bathroom.
Mayor Choi visits Chang-ho and asks for the truth. Chang-ho keeps up his persona of Big Mouse and tells him to choose — will he help Chang-ho or not? Mayor Choi asks about Mi-ho and Chang-ho tells him that he will deal with his wife. Chang-ho’s behaviour is explained as we see the warden is watching and listening to everything.
Mi-ho is suspicious of the head nurse, who is taking blood samples from patients at the hospital. She follows her all the way to the hospital’s technology innovation centre, where she enters the supply room. However, she gets caught by Joo-hee and a security guard, who claim that the head nurse was never there. Joo-hee threatens Mi-ho and she leaves. Then she reminds the security guard to not “go inside”, referring to a hidden door in the supply room. ..
Ji-hoon leaves the VIPs and comes across Chang-ho, who asks if he met with Mi-ho. Chang-ho says that threatening family is cheating. Ji-hoon claims there’s no cheating in war. He gets a phone call from his wife who has received a bouquet of white carnations — funeral flowers. Chang-ho warns him to play by the rules.
Chairman Yang approves of Chang-ho’s plan to capture Han Jae-ho and has his people help him do so. Chang-ho tells Han Jae-ho that he will confess to Professor Seo’s murder if he agrees to do so. In the end, Han Jae-ho agrees.
Mayor Choi calls Mi-ho and asks her to meet him. When they do, he tells her the story of how his father ran a dye factory and was falsely accused of dumping toxic waste. He became a lawyer to help people like his father but later realised that the accusations were true all along. He then reveals what happened with the drug dealer names to Mi-ho and says that Chang-ho really is Big Mouse.
Mi-ho is relieved and her husband, Chang-ho, tells her that he has paid 100 million won to the loan shark and settled those debts. Mi-ho thinks of her life with Chang-ho and breaks down.
The Episode Review
Episode 5 was a great episode. Chang-ho played Big Mouse so convincingly that a seed of doubt began to grow, just as it does with Mi-ho. If he’s not Big Mouse, how did he get the real names of Big Mouse’s clients? ..
It’s nice to see Chang-ho take a position of power where he was once at his lowest. The way the tables turn on the three VIPs is also a satisfying direction for the story to take, it’s nice to have them grovelling in fear for once.
That said, Chang-ho does a good job of leaning into the character. The way his voice drops an octave while speaking to the mayor and the way he threatens the three VIPs, it’s all done with a swagger worthy of a genius con man. Kudos to Lee Jong-suk’s amazing talent for making us all believe it!
Mi-ho is a fantastic character, as she tirelessly tries to save her husband from imprisonment while also doubting his true intentions. Her persistence and bravery never come across as over the top, and her strong moral ground seems genuine. ..
The show is really about these two characters. Their strong affection and dedication for each other is what makes you root for them. Being catapulted from pure ordinary lives into this messy world of crime is another factor that makes you want to see them succeed.
In this episode, we see a blip in that relationship as Mi-ho starts to have doubts. But hopefully, that won’t last too long and our favourite couple will keep having each other’s backs as they have been so far.
