Queen of Tears, the ongoing romantic-comedy kdrama that has taken the world by storm, surpassing legendary k-dramas like Goblin, Crash Landing On You and Reply 1988, has received its highest rating yet. With a solid 21.6% nationwide rating and gaining almost half a million viewership on Netflix, making it to the Top 10 list, Queen of Tears has everyone on their knees.
In episode 14 of the Queen of Tears, Da-hye is threatened by Seul-hee for betraying her and choosing to be with Soo-cheol. But how did Da-hye come to this point? From being in team Eun-seong to Team Hong? As anticipation for the finale this week grows, here is a detailed explanation of how Da-hye betrayed Eun-seong and Seul-hee to be with Soo-cheol.
Stage 1 : Soo-cheol and Da-hye’s history 20 years ago
Soo-cheol and Da-hye met for the first time in the orphanage when the chairman, Man-dae, with Seul-hee and the entire Hong family visits the orphanage as part of their charity event – giving scholarships to deserving students.
The clever Da-hye quickly ascertains that the Hongs are a wealthy family. Armed with this knowledge, she approaches a cry-baby Soo-cheol, a child 5 years younger than her. She asked him a few questions and realises that Soo-cheol is the only son of the family. Then, she proposes that once they grow up, they should marry but Soo-cheol doesn’t quite like the idea and refuses. When Da-hye pretends to slap him, he runs away calling his grandfather. Well, she had quite a temper back then as well.
Stage 2 : Soo-cheol and Da-hye meet again
Soo-cheol and Da-hye meet once again when Grace Go sets them up. This is part of Eun-seong and Seul-hee’s grand scheme of things to take-over the Queens group. Since, Da-hye, like Eun-seong, has lived most of her life in poverty at the orphanage, she joins Eun-seong’s plan for the money. At a party, when Da-hye first sees Soo-cheol, he isn’t quite interested in her, neither does he remember her. Ironically enough, Eun-seong is too naïve for Da-hye taste.
They finally meet face to face at the blind date. Da-hye comes armed with a false background where her parents apparently are Ivy league professors, who live in the States. Soo-cheol lays his preferences bare: he is not interested in older women! Why? Because Hae-in, his older sister, bullied him so much that “whenever he’s on a date with older women, my body knows somehow”. And guess what, it is so easy for Da-hye to fool him, that he marries her without even knowing her real age.
Stage 3: Soo-cheol marries Da-hye without knowing her real identity
Soo-cheol is living a blissful life with Da-hye not knowing a single thing about her. And Da-hye? She’s often frustrated about how much Soo-cheol talks! She’s also working behind the scenes with Eun-seong and company. When the Hongs, along with Eun-seong, go on the hunting trip, Da-hye is the one who compromises the fence and sets the boar amok, which is eventually shot down by Hyun-woo.
She keeps up with appearances and often helps Grace manipulate Seon-hwa into thinking that Hae-in wants to prevail over Soo-cheol. With Soo-cheol, she’s almost like his nanny – she feeds him fruits, motivates him and encourages him to talk to his grandfather.
Stage 4 : The turning point in Soo-cheol and Da-hye’s love life
However, over time, Da-hye starts noticing how much Soo-cheol cares about her and Geun-woo. When Beom-ja comments that Geun-woo doesn’t really look like Soo-cheol and suggests that he may not be his child, Soo-cheol defends his wife and son and leaves. He later apologises to Da-hye for being weak and unable to protect his family. In other incident, Soo-cheol is learning to ride a bike so that he can be a good father to Geun-woo and can teach him when he gets older. He falls and Seon-hwa, who’s paranoid after losing one child already, tells him to get off. But Soo-cheol passionately relays how he wants his Geun-woo to have a good father and this melts Da-hye’s heart.
Since she’s someone who has never had been cared for before, Soo-cheol is a first for her. At the chairman’s 80th birthday, Soo-cheol tells her that he’s going to do his best for Da-hye and Geun-woo. But Da-hye already knew that she was leaving but even then, she genuinely thanks Soo-cheol for being there for her.
Soo-cheol already deeply cares about and loves Da-hye. So, when Da-hye is nowhere to be find, he looks for her everywhere crying. In the letter that Da-hye leaves behind, she tells him the truth about her and her age, and that Geun-woo is not his child. Even then, Soo-cheol fusses about how Geun-woo cannot sleep without him, and sure enough, Da-hye has a difficult time with Geun-woo on her flight to the US.
Stage 5: Da-hye betrays Team Eun-seong to be with Soo-cheol
While Soo-cheol is having a terrible time without Da-hye in Yongdu-ri, where the entire family relocates after Seul-hee kicks the Hongs out of their house. However, Soo-cheol finally cracks the code on how to reach her. Da-hye often plays online games and fortunately, she still uses the same ID. So, he waits for her to come online and shoots her a quick message sending information about Geun-woo’s vaccination and asks her to make sure he gets his second dose of vaccine. This reminds Da-hye of how much Soo-cheol loves Geun-woo – he used to cry when Geun-woo would get a vaccine shot.
Later, when Da-hye receives the news about Hae-in’s illness, she calls Eun-seong and asks him to make sure Soo-cheol has his anxiety medication otherwise it could be fatal. But Eun-seong threatens her instead and asks her to not call him again.
Much later, when Geun-woo’s biological father returns to Da-hye and begins being violent with both of them, Da-hye packs her bags and goes back to Soo-cheol in Yongdu-ri. Soo-cheol is, of course, beyond happy. Da-hye returns most of the money and the gold Buddha statue that she’d stolen from the family. When Seon-hwa attacks Da-hye’s credibility and questions Geum-woo’s parentage, Soo-cheol passionately defends his family and claims that since he was there when Geun-woo was born, Geun-woo is his real son nonetheless. And that is how Soo-cheol and Da-hye’s love story pans out!
Are you watching Queen Of Tears? What are your predictions for the ending to this one? Let us know in the comments below!