“If I’d known earlier, I would’ve cut off your breath already.
Ha… you bastard.
Even if you’re obsessed with another woman, how dare you try to kill your wife?
Jo Hwa-jin is already your concubine. Isn’t legal adultery enough for you?
Did you really have to kill your lawful wife with your own hands?”
“Do you claim there was another reason? That you had some noble justification for trying to kill her? What a joke. The only reason you tried to kill me was because I’m weaker than you. If I were stronger, if I were a real threat, you wouldn’t have dared. It was easy. I’m weaker, so you thought you could kill me. That’s the only reason. Now go ahead—prove you’re nothing more than a murderer who preys on the weak.”
Damn! That rage.
“Did that punk just underestimate me? If this were my real body, he wouldn’t stand a chance. Ughhh!”
Jang Bong-hwan – an Unlikely Hero
What a strange character. Normally arrogant, self-indulgent, a man who lives for pleasure and his own safety—but at unexpected moments, he becomes gentle, righteous, almost heroic.
Lines like “Did you really have to kill your wife with your own hands?” and “Do you claim there was a noble reason for this?” weren’t really about him. The lawful wife was Kim So-yong, not Bong-hwan. Yet he was furious on her behalf. He called her “this woman”, not “me.” He wasn’t just angry that he was targeted, but that someone weaker was.
That’s where his odd tenderness and moral clarity shine through. He expresses righteous anger boldly, and I love that about him.
Bong-hwan’s Perceptiveness
Bong-hwan has this uncanny ability to understand things immediately—things that others would completely miss. Almost effortlessly.
Like when he realized So-yong had attempted suicide and said to Cheoljong:
“You should’ve understood before she jumped.”
Is it because he’s inside So-yong’s body? Because he carries modern sensibilities? Or simply because he has unusually high emotional intelligence?
“Because I’m Weaker”
That line—
“If I were stronger, you wouldn’t have dared. You went after me only because I was weak. That’s the real reason.”
This hit so hard. The law of the jungle. The weak are preyed upon not because of justice or fate, but because it’s easy.
That’s why people admire those who resist the strong (gang-gang-yak-yak). And why we despise those who trample the weak while bowing to the powerful (gang-yak-yak-gang). It’s cowardice. It’s hypocrisy.
An Unforgettable Line
Other characters in other dramas could have said something similar. But coming from Bong-hwan, it felt unforgettable. Perhaps it was Shin Hye-sun’s acting—the tone, the delivery, the raw energy.
“The only reason you tried to kill me was because I’m weaker than you. If I were stronger, you wouldn’t have dared.”
This is a line I won’t forget.