吳瑟妮有幸參加李赫舉辦的午宴，沒想到席間卻出了大事。閔宥拉疏遠羅汪湜與他的母親。

李赫為了取得不在場證明而去觀賞瑟妮的表演。宥拉扛起該負的責任。汪湜則是痛苦不已。

李赫為了保護宥拉，只得聽從太后娘娘姜恩蘭的安排。汪湜為了復仇而展開訓練。

汪湜在皇室護衛徵選中脫穎而出。瑟妮在準備婚事，太后娘娘則想盡辦法要將宥拉趕出宮。

汪湜發現母親的實際遭遇後，大為光火。李赫的心不在焉讓瑟妮大失所望，她想尋求解決之道。

李赫對宥拉的感情令太皇太后大為震驚。汪湜看顧瑟妮。吳荷露尋找行蹤成謎的文森李。

突如其來的警訊刺激瑟妮對付宥拉。躲著太后娘娘的李允，住進荷露和她父親家。

遭設局的瑟妮陷入難以想像的窘境後，開始調查一樁可疑的命案，同時尋求皇祖母的幫忙。

宮裡驚人的命案讓所有皇室成員都成了嫌犯。洪素玫要轉交一個重要的信封。

在逃亡之餘，瑟妮得知更多李赫的秘密，並且對他展開報復。有人坦承犯下命案。

瑟妮回到不歡迎她的宮中。李赫與太后娘娘交付汪湜一項邪惡的任務。李允交給卞白虎一本日記。

瑟妮與汪湜聯手。已故昭賢皇后的回憶在李赫腦海揮之不去。宥拉有太多事情要隱瞞。

首相讓徐江熙得其所願。昭賢皇后日記裡的一條線索引領瑟妮來到太后娘娘的花園。汪湜成功嚇唬對手。

太后娘娘推翻加諸於她的指控。汪湜迫切想得到的答案就在宥拉身上。雅麗公主學到寶貴的一課。

李赫與瑟妮日久生情，他命危那晚的實情卻讓他遭受打擊。皇室準備舉辦義賣活動。

李赫在瑟妮不知情的狀態下暗中幫助她，她跟汪湜則在花園四處打探。李允想向大眾揭露太后娘娘的作為。

太后娘娘做得實在太過火，惹得江熙怒不可遏。瑟妮和李赫與素珍長公主和汪湜進行四人約會。

李允的小說震撼了太后娘娘與李赫，他倆各自否認與昭賢皇后溺斃有關。宥拉針對汪湜的弱點下手。

汪湜隱瞞自己不斷惡化的情況。太后娘娘遭質問皇祖母的真實遺囑後，下令汪湜幫她除掉瑟妮。

瑟妮讓太后娘娘知道她也會耍卑鄙手段，並取得屬於她的一切。李赫打翻醋罈子。江熙奪權的手段適得其反。

宥拉和姜柱勝重逢的場面十分悲戚。李赫質問汪湜是否偽造身分。李允持續調查昭賢皇后的死因。

瑟妮相信攻擊李允的人並非李赫，她心裡認定嫌犯另有他人，進而設下圈套。太后娘娘和江熙都想先找到柱勝。

汪湜以眼還眼進行報復，動用皇室資產的舉動惹惱了太后娘娘及素珍。雅麗受封為皇太女。

遭廢位的皇后回到宮內替雅麗選擇法定代理人，期間汪湜在旁陪伴。瑟妮聽聞千金島上的神秘活動。

皇室家族剩下的秘密一一浮上檯面。李赫登基週年紀念活動前夕，瑟妮要求恢復他的頭銜。

瑟妮和宥拉努力收集更多證據之際，李赫展開行動，彌補皇室過去的錯誤並永遠阻止太后娘娘。

The Emperor brings back Yu Ra and forces her to make false statements accusing the Empress Dowager of murdering the Grand Empress Dowager. Sunny also confronts the Empress Dowager with Cheong Dan, the court lady who disappeared after stating she had eaten the poisoned food. Meanwhile, the Empress Dowager denies all accusations, and Woo Bin asks Yu Ra again where she hid Wang Shik's mother's body.

Wang Shik recovers his mother's body and gives her a proper goodbye. He promises her that he will punish those who are responsible for her death. Sunny stays close by and consoles Wang Shik, and through the empathy, their relationship grows deeper. Meanwhile, the Emperor grows jealous of their relationship and tries to win the Empress back.

Prince Yoon charges into the Emperor's chamber and yells in disgust of the incident that took Sunny's mother's life to save the Emperor. After learning this fact, the Empress Dowager shows no guilt or remorse of what she had done, but to the Emperor, it hits his soft spot. Meanwhile, the Empress Dowager orders Sunny to host the Imperial Family's bazaar.

The Empress recovers from the Empress Dowager's attempt to kill her, but it leaves her family outraged and wanting revenge. Sunny learns that Prince Yoon is helping to reveal Empress So Hyun's death, and Prince Yoon gives the hospital director a chance to come clean about what happened to Sunny's mother 10-years ago. Meanwhile, the Empress Dowager continues to manipulate Sunny's fate.

The hospital director kills himself to stop the truth from coming out, Prince Yoon publishes the second part of his novel depicting the death of Empress So Hyun, and Sunny finds out that the blood meant for her mother went to the Emperor. Meanwhile, Princess So Jin saves Woo Bin from the Empress Dowager's wrath.

Chief Chun proclaims his desire for the Empress in front of the Emperor, but the Empress rebukes his words for his sake. The Empress Dowager swaps cookies made by the Empress with ones with peanuts hoping to condemn the Empress's worth as a mother figure. But her recklessness for Princess Ari's well-being infuriates Kang Hee to get her to tell the Emperor the truth about the late Empress So Hyun. Meanwhile, Chief Chun locks up Ms. Choi.

After calling the Empress Dowager, Chief Joo helps Yu Ra escape from Sunil Mental Hospital. Yu Ra promises the Empress Dowager to give her Na Wang Shik and informs her of his little brother. Meanwhile, the Emperor forces the Empress Dowager to apologize to the Empress with incriminating evidence.

As the Emperor reads from Vincent Lee's book, the Empress Dowager screams for him to stop. Soon after, Chief Byun enters the room and demands to know the truth behind her daughter's death. The Crown Prince also emerges and confesses he is Vincent Lee and that the narrative of the book is true. Later, the Emperor abandons the Empress Dowager as his mother and swears to protect Sunny until the very end.

Yu Ra intends to keep her promise to the Empress Dowager and fetches Dong Shik to the palace hoping to lure in Wang Shik. The Emperor finishes reading Vincent Lee's book and tracks down Prince Yoon to find out more of what he knows. Later, he succumbs to the Empress's words and heads off to the Empress Dowager's garden.

Princess Ari jumps up and down in joy after being told by Kang Hee that she will be the empress regnant very soon. Princess Ari keeps her joy in secret but ends up narrating to the Empress that the Chungeum Island painting by the Grand Empress Dowager was bequeathed to the Empress Dowager and not to her. Meanwhile, the Emperor visits Sunny's house and causes a commotion.

The Empress Dowager orders Woo Bin to run away with the Empress in the middle of the night. Woo Bin tells the Empress of this, but she decides to play along with the Empress Dowager's scheme. After everything plays out, the Empress Dowager ends up being the one to answer to the media.

When the Emperor is about to pull the trigger, Woo Bin promises to bring him Wang Shik. The Empress blackmails the Empress Dowager and regains command of the palace workers, and later, she uses her authority to fire Yu Ra as the Empress Dowager's court lady and places her under her control. Meanwhile, the Emperor continues to court the Empress.

To ensure the promise of Princess Ari becoming the empress regnant, Kang Hee gives her recorded testimony of seeing Emperor Lee Hyuk of killing Empress So Hyun to the Prime Minister. However, the Empress gets hard evidence of the two's intimate relationship and intervenes her plot. Meanwhile, the Empress accepts the Emperor's proposal and gets him to tell her what she wants.

Woo Bin reveals his true identity to Yu Ra, but he doesn't kill her. He takes her to Kang Joo Seung to help him remember the past. The Emperor, who is now free from his duties, continues to court the Empress. However, his gifts to her family as reconcilement turn for the worst. Later, desperate to claim her right to power, Kang Hee visits the Prime Minister's wife at the hospital and reveals his infidelity.

Joo Seung remembers the day he was supposed to meet Yu Ra and explains it to her in detail. Princess So Jin asks Woo Bin desperately to get back together, and later, begs the Empress Dowager to make him hers. Meanwhile, former Chief Guard Joo reveals himself to the Emperor with information regarding the real Na Wang Shik's whereabouts.

All the evidence found in the investigation of Prince Yoon's attacker points to the Emperor. However, the Empress suspects it was Kang Hee. But with Princess Ari as her alibi, she can't prove it. She resorts to using Yu Ra to find out more about Kang Hee by reviving Joo Seung's memory. Meanwhile, the Empress Dowager reviews the video evidence captured on Prince Yoon's phone and hides it in her safe.

The Empress and the Emperor set up a trap for Kang Hee. With so much on the line, Kang Hee takes the bait. When she couldn't look any guiltier of being Prince Yoon's attacker and of knowing something about the death of Empress So Hyun, the Empress Dowager comes to cover for her. Later, the Empress Dowager shows the Emperor proof that Woo Bin, the Empress, Prince Yoon, and even Baek Ho, are making a fool of him.

To save Dong Shik and the rest of the imperial guards' lives, Wang Shik withdraws his gun and submits to the Emperor's wishes. However, when taken away by the Emperor's guards, they release him in return for his good deeds. Later, Wang Shik catches the Emperor off guard and gives him a little taste of what he had done to his mother. Meanwhile, the Empress Dowager instates Princess Ari as the Crown Princess.

The Empress Dowager is shocked to hear of the Emperor's return unscathed. When she talks to him, she tells him to divorce the Empress immediately, but the Emperor tells her he'll resolve the problem his way. Later, the Empress Dowager calls in Mr. Pyo and orders him to stop Empress Eun at all costs from entering the palace. Meanwhile, Kang Hee discovers from Joo Seung that Yu Ra was with him at the mental hospital.

Michelle, the former empress under Emperor Lee Jeong's rule 30 years ago, arrives at the palace to appoint the legal proxy for the Crown Princess, stunning everyone. Making things even more shocking is her aid, Na Wang Shik, who will also be making a special audit regarding the death of the Grand Empress Dowager and Empress So Hyun. Later, the Empress Dowager orders Ms. Choi to bring her Sa Goon Ja, the old lady living on Chungeum Island.

The Emperor regrets getting mad at the Empress and begs her not to leave him as she sleeps. Michelle announces Empress Oh Sunny to be the Crown Princess' proxy and tells her about the conversation about her she had with the Grand Empress Dowager before her passing. Later, Sunny tries to match the hairpin she receives from Michelle with the one used in the Grand Empress Dowager's murder, knowing that the only other one, was owned by the Empress Dowager.

The Emperor and Prince Yoon catch Kang Hee red-handed admitting to killing Joo Seung, but she reveals that it was the Empress Dowager's decree. Prince Yoon surprises the Empress Dowager in her chamber and accuses her of trying to kill him. Then he and the Emperor play Joo Seung's recorded testimony that coaxes her to admit to the poppy farm on Chungeum Island. Meanwhile, Sunny asks Michelle to reinstate Hyuk as the emperor before she leaves the palace.

Knowing that Sunny planned to reveal everything during his 10-year-anniversary as the emperor, he asks her for her forgiveness one last time before he locks her up. On the day of the celebration, Yu Ra helps Sunny escape. Sunny makes it to the venue just in time, and when she stands in front of the crowd, she tells everyone of the unthinkable heinous crimes the Imperial Family had committed. Meanwhile, Mr. Pyo and his henchmen run down Wang Shik, causing him to crash head-on with a wall.

Sunny recuperates from the blast with Hyuk at her side. When she wakes, he tells her that it was Na Wang Shik who was behind the attack. Later, at a press conference held at the palace, the Empress Dowager affirms Na Wang Shik as the attacker, and when questioned about the Empress's accusations, she pins it all on the Emperor. Shattered by his mother's words, Hyuk dresses up as Na Wang Shik and carries on with his vengeance to destroy the palace. Meanwhile, someone buries Wang Shik next to his mother's grave.

With the Emperor dead, the Empress Dowager rushes to make her escape from the palace. As she is about to leave, Kang Hee confronts her. Unaware of the police and media waiting outside the door, they dig their graves as their dispute reveals each of their crimes. The police arrest them and take them away. Later, Sunny completes her quest in bringing down the palace and the people in it, by declaring the abolition of the monarchy.