A Virtuous Business – K-drama Episode 7 Recap & Review

Healing From Trauma

Episode 7 of A Virtuous Business starts with us seeing the full extent of Jeong-suk’s horrific ordeal. Do-hyeon manages to show and save her, but Jeong-suk is traumatized and he kindly drives her home. Do-hyeon is concerned and encourages her to get some rest if she’s not going to go hospital. The police want her statement but he knows she’s not in the right mindset to do that right now.

The next day, Jeong-suk is spooked at every loud noise, including knocking at her door. The ladies discuss their business but she’s really struggling with going to these in-home calls after what took place – especially going alone.

Gyeong-sik is still in the police station the next day, and when he kicks up a fuss, Do-hyeon doesn’t stand for any of that. He stamps his authority and decides to take care of this himself, given Jeong-suk isn’t in the right mindset right now. However, Do-hyeon isn’t at 100% either. Where Gyeong-sik smacked him, he’s bleeding from the back of the neck and the other detectives notice.

When Do-hyeon finds out that Jeong-suk is going back to work, he’s concerned. However, the latter is more concerned over her rushing back into work so soon. She doesn’t want word to get out about this, and Do-hyeon gladly obliges.

However, Detective Na can’t stop running his mouth and he spreads little clues to the neighbourhood ladies while he’s boasting about his prowess. They’re not stupid, and soon realize that Jeong-suk was the victim. Jeong-suk overhears them talking in town not long after, and can’t face the mob, especially given she’s trying so hard to protect Min-ho from all of this.

Jeong-suk shows up at her next in-house call and she immediately sees Gyeong-sik in place of the husband and she starts to panic. She takes her things and runs, just as Do-hyeon shows. He’s worried about her and thinks running from this and trying to hide is not the way to go. He wants her to step up, face this head-on and overcome it, but Jeong-suk is just not there right now. She does, however, see the bandages at the back of Do-hyeon’s neck.

Jeong-suk’s friends are the last to find out, but word of what’s happened is all over town. Geum-hui and Yeong-bok show up that night and are immediately worried. The thing is, Gyeong-sik is not letting this sit and is making himself out to be a victim. The pair believe Jeong-suk should fight it and that stems from giving her testimony and report to the police.

The turning point though is actually Min-ho talking to his bestie. He brings up how to face their issues head-on, and how they shouldn’t let anyone bully and run them down.

The ladies, now empowered by their decision, all show up ready to give their testimony. They all march into the station, completely caked in makeup, and decide they’re going to get the right story out. However, the neighbourhood ladies already there are on Jeong-suk’s side, which takes them aback.

It all kicks off though when Gyeong-sik shows and starts spouting lies about her being at the house for the settlement money. When Jeong-suk, usually so calm and quiet, shouts at Gyeong-sik, it shocks everyone into silence. He smirks and starts laughing but Jeong-suk stands her ground and tells him to shut up, smacking the top of his head and knocking him out.

Jeong-suk is worried about the repercussions but Do-hyeon and the others decide to turn the other cheek. Out of all of this hurt and pain, one thing’s clear. People in town have a positive perception to Jeong-suk and all these ladies are certainly looking out for her.

Yeong-bok and the others are surprised by Jeong-suk’s sudden burst of confidence and she slyly mentions how she was coached. She also decides to meet up with Do-hyeon the following day. Na is suspicious though, given his interest in her… but he believes it’s just to get a discount on adult products!

Meanwhile, Yeong-bok finds out she may actually be pregnant, given she’s been feeling sick and bloated. She heads to the pharmacy for some medicine but when she checks the calendar, she realizes it could well be true.

This is further complicated by a familiar face in town (for our residents, not for us, the audience!) A man named Du-seok phones Yeong-bok’s husband and wants them to meet. He has a job coming up and wants him to join in, dangling a carrot on a stick by offering a bigger place and more money. The pregnancy could actually sway him into making this rash choice, but we’ll see.

Do-hyeon and Jeong-suk meet up, with the latter wanting to help Do-hyeon with finding his mum. After all, he was so helpful with her issues, that this is her way of thanking him. His house is cold and pretty uninviting, but down in the basement is where he keeps all of his stuff. He has stacks of papers, boxes and documents. The main draw is the board with various names everywhere. One of which, could be his mum.

The new clue stems from these arson attacks. It seems like there’s a serial arsonist out there who is kidnapping babies from those houses caught on fire. Poor babies seem to be the main victims and he is one of those, given the burn marks up his arm.

Jeong-suk is full-on with helping and decides that she should take the lead with interviewing the women around town. They may be more open with her than him, and it helps Do-hyeon think more fondly on her than he did beforehand. He checks over the notes she’s left when she leaves that night, and notices a part he never thought of – maybe his parents are looking for him too?

When he falls asleep on the sofa, Jeong-suk heads back to his house to find her notepad. She finds the detective asleep on the sofa having a bad dream. He hears humming in this one and a woman sitting at a table patting her pregnant belly. The woman is faceless, and when he awakens, he finds Jeong-suk in front of her, and he hugs her, fearful over what he saw.

The Episode Review

Seeing al the neighbourhood ladies rally around Jeong-suk like that after her abuse is a really heartwarming moment. It helps to balance out the more dramatic segments with Gyeong-sik or the Do-hyeon mystery, while simultaneously keeping that idea of girls sticking together and empowering each other as the central of this drama.

There’s also the Yeong-bok pregnancy situation that’s undoubtedly going to throw a spanner in the works, along with the cute romance bubbling between Ju-ri and Dae-geun, which gets a good deal of comedy relief. Honestly, this kid needs to slow down, given he bruised her chin after that kiss!

However, this episode is definitely more healing than anything else. Both Jeong-suk and Do-hyeon learn things about themselves they didn’t beforehand, and that helps to build both their characters and the bonds they’ve forged too.

The ending hints that we’ve got romance on the horizon for the episodes ahead, so we’ll have to wait and see what’s in store for us next!