No Gain No Love – K-drama Episode 9 Recap & Review

Episode 9

Episode 9 of No Gain No Love begins with Gyu-hyun and Ha-jun playing football with the kids at the orphanage. After the game, Ja-yeon comes by and hears Gyu-hyun telling the kids that he enjoys playing games with them. She has so many questions to ask him about Ha-jun but she ends up asking him if he likes her. He admits that he does like her even though he has no right to do so.

Still, he asks her to give him a chance. She believes she can’t have a happy ending though and walks away. But she comes face to face with Ha-jun, who realises she’s the writer Yeon Bo-ra. Gyu-hyun takes Ja-yeon in his car to drop her home. She hints that she will be moving out soon.  

Back home, Ji-uk and Hae-yeong are setting up the new bed in his room when Ji-uk asks Hae-yeong about her father. She says she doesn’t usually talk about her father. When Gyu-hyun drops Ja-yeon off, he gets a call from his mother that shocks him.

Ji-uk and Hae-yeong are getting cozy in his bedroom when Gyu-hyun bursts into Ji-uk’s room. He asks Ji-uk if he’s the CEO’s illegitimate son. Ji-uk says he doesn’t know who his father is but Gyu-hyun orders him and Hae-yeong to leave his company. Ja-yeon witnesses all of it. After he’s gone, Hae-yeong believes there’s only one solution to not losing her job. Ji-uk must take over Gyu-hyun’s position in Kkulbee.

Gyu-hyun comes home to find his mother and father in the midst of a fight. Gi-ho claims that he brought Ji-uk in because he wanted the competition to bring out Gyu-hyun’s but Jeong-a isn’t having any of it.  

Ji-uk apologises to Hae-yeong for causing all this trouble but she sympathises with everything he’s had to go through. He says he’s scared that getting married was a mistake. Hae-yeong gives him a kiss and says they should worry about the next day when it comes. She’s happy that they don’t have any more secrets between them. Except they do, as we see Ji-uk looking at the photograph of him and Hae-yeong’s mother.

Meanwhile, Hae-yeong begins to look up labour laws. Hui-seong correctly surmises that she likes Ji-uk but Hae-yeong doesn’t confirm. Later, Hui-seong’s bag spills over and Ja-yeon finds a sonogram. She realises that Hui-seong is pregnant and she doesn’t know which of the guys she’s seeing is the father.

Ja-yeon advises her that they, of all people, know what happens when someone who isn’t ready to become a parent has a child. Hui-seong says she is well aware but asks her not to tell Hae-yeong.

In the morning, Ji-uk tells Hae-yeong that he is going to resign to avoid more trouble. But when they get to work, a notice announces that Hae-yeong has been relieved of her post while Ji-uk is suspended. When Gyu-hyun enters, Ji-uk loudly proclaims that he and Hae-yeong are getting divorced. But Gyu-hyun realises the divorce is a lie anyway.

A flashback shows that Jeong-a told Gyu-hyun to send Ji-uk to a different country. At present, he tells Ji-uk to leave the country and not come back. If he doesn’t he’ll make his and Hae-yeong’s life a living hell. Meanwhile, Woo-jae sees his chance when he hears about the divorce. He goes to speak to Hae-yeong and mentions the fake marriage but she convinces him that nothing about it was fake.

Hui-seong meets Tae-hyeong and tells him she’s pregnant. He seems keen on having the child anyway but Hui-seong says they should get an abortion. Hae-yeong meets Ji-uk on the rooftop along with a set of bubble blowers, in order to cheer him up. She tells him not to worry about her.

While Woo-jae is discussing Hae-yeong’s demotion, Yi-lin reveals that she knows Hae-yeong is his ex-girlfriend. After hearing about her divorce, she suspects something is still going on between them.

Due to her new role in the company, Hae-yeong has to go on several business trips to close down Kkulbee centers that aren’t doing well. She leaves to go to Busan but finds Ji-uk waiting on the train for her. He says he wants to spend more time with her. He mentions that Ja-yeon has been going out a lot. Back home, Ja-yeon gets a phone call that scares her. She then goes to see a new apartment and rents it on the spot.

In Busan, Hae-yeong has to break the news to a small Kkulbee store that it is being shut down. The employee is very disheartened. Hae-yeong then realises that an old woman used to come to the centre since she has dementia but won’t be able to anymore.

Ha-jun calls Ja-yeon and the two meet. Ha-jun thanks her for using his name for such a cool male lead in her stories and apologises for writing those comments on her page. This seems to make Ja-yeon happy.

After her work is done, Hae-yeong meets Ji-uk by the beach and they spend the rest of their day exploring the city. Later, Hae-yeong tells Ji-uk that after her father died, she moved out of her house. Five years later, her mother decided to move out of Seoul and that’s when Hae-yeong moved back in. She wonders what those five years were like for Eun-ok. At the train station, Hae-yeong tells Ji-uk they should make more memories like this day again.

Meanwhile, Ja-yeon keeps thinking about how Ha-jun told her that Gyu-hyun has feelings for her. She then notices a man lingering outside the house. The man makes a call and Ja-yeon’s phone rings. The phone contact reads ‘Murderer’.

As Hae-yeong and Ji-uk reach home, they come across a policeman who knows both of them. He hints to Hae-yeong that she should check her mail and text messages. That’s when Hae-yeong sees a text that says Man Chang-il was released on parole. She realises Ja-yeon is in trouble and runs towards the house. At the end of No Gain No Love Episode 9, they see a man hugging Ja-yeon and Hae-yeong and Ji-uk pull him off only to find that it is Gyu-hyun.

The Episode Review

No Gain No Love Episode 9 is slightly more serious than the previous episodes but seeing as we are in the last leg of the season, perhaps this makes sense. Stakes are now high and secrets are coming out. Hae-yeong’s reaction to Ji-uk’s parentage is a lot warmer than I expected and complements the show’s more comic scenes. She and Ji-uk continue to be the highlight of this series and I can’t wait to see how Ji-uk is going to handle the ultimatum he’s been given.

Speaking of, Gyu-hyun’s character is a bit harder to consider seeing as he is both, an antagonist and a love interest. The series is trying hard to put those two sides together but after his threat to Ji-uk in this episode, it seems harder than ever. The Ha-jun issue was settled relatively easily as well. Hui-seong’s development is an interesting one and I’m hoping her story continues to be as unique and unconventional as it has been so far!