Mistress Recap Episode 4

So many revelations today. We are forming a lot of connections as we try to understand what is going on. The bulk of the revelations today come from Se-yeon’s storyline, but Eun-soo finds out quite a bit herself. And we, as audience members, know a lot more than all the ladies. But we are still left in the dark on many things. Confusing, I know! But the show manages to pull it all together nicely.

Newsletter: We are building our newsletter! You know, just in case social media disappears. Subscribe to keep in touch.
Character List (Updated Again):Shorthand Character List

---

MISTRESS RECAP EPISODE 4
OPENING
2 Years & 6 Months Before
The four friends are sitting and happily eating at a café. JW says she saw JW’s husband on TV, he looked so nervous. His hand was shaking. He went on TV as a replacement, but maybe he will be a regular soon. The ladies talk about the husband. They like it that he is on TV, maybe he will be friends with celebrities and they can join celebrity drinking parties.

A woman comes in, it is JH, the candle shop owner. She says, aren’t you SY? It looks like she knows all of them. They all talk to her, perhaps she is an old high school friend. She wasn’t friends with all of them though, HY says they weren’t friends, okay? She asks them if they all played like this together still? Soon they will talk about men and memories or memories with men. You should come to my studio, I am going to open a studio, a scented candle studio. If we all do it together, then it will be fun. Let’s do it!

HY looks annoyed.

TITLE: SCENTED CANDLE STUDIO

Back to the little boy saying that he saw the candle, it was all red. He saw her coming out from the house. Son asks ES how she knew the candle was missing. ES says it was his present to him. It is not important who gave it, but who took it. She gave it to him to calm him down, she can do that as a patient, he was her teacher. Can she go now?

ES tells her that she is good now, she used to lie with her mouth, but her eyes revealed the lie. Now she lies with her eyes too. ES tells him that she is sorry, but they should go home separately. She gets in her car and buckles up while thinking about giving the candle gift to her studio. She made it by herself. He has to use it until it burns out. He asks why. She tells him that he will know when it happens.

SY. Sun-yi is using SY’s cell phone. SY tells her that this is ajumma’s cellphone. Sunyi runs off happily and plays with her daughter. SY sees that this is the unknown caller that called.

HY. HY keeps following TO. She asks him if he would like to sleep together. He tells her that she is the same as she was ten years ago. HY is pulled back to the present as she takes photos of TO with this young woman. The young woman hurt her leg, so TO helps her. HY wonders who this woman is, with a tsk.

SY. SY drops off her child and then goes to SH’s house. She asks if his daughter is really sick? He says she has stomach problems. SY wants to see her. She goes inside. SH pours her a hot drink. Then she tells him that he should take his child to the hospital and wash his face. She might have enteritis. he goes to clean up and grumbles about how she was okay yesterday.

SY looks at his house. There is only snack food around and the house is not organized, it is all messy.

JW. JW and MG text each other a lot about how it was fun to find the kid. They should have a party. He can cook and she can bring wine. Can he cook? Her standards are high, it is fixed to a famous chefs cooking. He tells her to try it first. They both laugh. One of the students alerts JW to the VP who is in the room. Both MG and JW stand and greet her.

SY. The murder weapon? The candle is the missing murder weapon? SY is talking to ES about this. The witness remembered the bloody candle. But I have a problem. The son preserved the crime scene, the living room is in a mess, but the bedroom is clean. A clean bedroom means they had a fight in the bedroom, but using the candle as a murder weapon? That is strange. There are a lot of things that person can use as a weapon (like a decorative stone in the living room). They both think it is strange. But SY thinks she should stop, she worried about her.

ES says this was all because of her. When he died, and she removed all her things from the house, it was for her, not for the teacher of the family members. She was afraid that everyone would know about her affair, that is why she did it. I removed all the evidence of the killer also (flashback of her scrubbing the scene). SY, I am also an accomplice. That is why I can’t stop. I hid the killer, so I have to find them also.

HY. Is this the woman? The lawyer holds a photo that HY has. HY pulls it away and says it isn’t. He says it is noticeable. HY gets up so the lawyer asks where she is going. She says she is going to see the wife. He tells her to just send the picture, as she walks further and further away.

ES. ES meets with the son. They discuss what she has. He wonders if this is it, this is strange. Why did the criminal take the candle? especially the one that you gave to him. Just because it is the murder weapon with blood? She says they have to catch the criminal if they want to know. He tells her she is super eager to catch the criminal now. She says she can’t stand it when she is wrongly accused or when someone is rude, but you did both things to me. He says, was I? Was I rude to you?

She tells him that she can’t do anything with the rudeness, but she can do something with being wrongly accused. She will make a copy of the letter and give it back to him.

JW. MG is heading home early. They ask him if he has a date. He says it would be nice if he did. The other teacher says that he must be dating someone. JW gets a text to expect a nice meal, see you later. The other teacher says he needs to move. Someone goes home on a date and another teacher smiles with a KaTalk from her husband. He never saw JW smile like that before. JW wonders, did she?

He gets a call from her husband. The teacher envies her, she just KaTalked him and now she has a call from him. JW answers, but she isn’t smiling as brightly anymore.

SY & ES. SY and ES are walking through a mall. ES shows the letter to SY. It is a straight love letter. They wonder if this is normal with a teacher and a student. This might not be between lovers. But is the lover also a student? But she catches herself and apologizes to ES. ES says she is fine. They keep talking about it. But then they get some cosmetics for SY’s nanny.

JW. MG gets home with a lot of groceries. JW is at her husband’s restaurant, she is waiting for him.

SY. SY and the nanny cook at home. SY is preparing a lot of food for her friend while the nanny, JS, helps her. But then they hear a glass break. Both women run to where the girls are. It looks like the girls accidentally broke a picture frame. Sangyi calls the man in the photo, appa. This alerts SY, her eyes grow big. JS tells SY that her daughter just calls everyone Appa. Then JS tells her daughter something in Chinese and leads her away. SY is left stunned on the floor next to the picture frame.

She walks to her balcony and watches the nanny and her daughter walk away.

ES. ES looks at the letter and compares the handwriting to all her patients The son calls and asks her if she has any progress. She says no, perhaps this person was a real student. ES thinks, like you? Maybe it could be true, he had a good relationship with students. they have a lot of data about students. ES remembers that the teacher used to give them a lot of data about writing poems.

SY. The nanny and the daughter walk home. SY follows them all the way. She sneaks and watches which house the nanny enters.

JW. MG cooks while at home. He happily cooks and listens to music. Meanwhile, JW is at her husband’s place. He isn’t coming so JW is about to leave. But the husband pushes up a cart and tells her to sit. He says this is not the kind of food that you can eat while standing. JW takes the top off the dish and sees a very delicately prepared meal.

ES. Cut to ES and the son, at the father’s place. S brought out all of the fathers old paperwork with the students’ writings. They start to look through it all in order to compare the handwriting from all the old students.

JW. DS watches his wife cut into his food and eat a small piece. He asks how it is. She says it is great, you can add it to the menu right away. He says he will put it on TV first. He asks her if she remembers the restaurant he worked at when he was a new chef? She does. He says he used to cook for her at night in front of the kitchen Back then, I didn’t tell you one thing, the next day, the owner found out and I was yelled at a lot. He hit me and it was very bad. JW is concerned. He asks her why she opened his restaurant there? The owner told him one thing. Someone like him will not be a chef, don’t even imagine it. He wanted to show him that he was wrong.

This is all because of JW that he can close his restaurant at a busy time and only serve one person. It is all because of her. Let’s get back together. I will treat you well.

She gets a text message from MG, where are you?

MG plays with a remote control car at home. He gets his response. She says that she is sorry but she can’t go there tonight. He purposefully crashes his car into the wall.

CAFE
The hair shop owner, YJ, is looking around the café. Someone comes in and asks her what she is doing there. This guy is SH. He says he saw her coming in and followed her. He locks the door and asks where she got the key. The hair shop lady grabs something sharp and asks how he knew she was following SY. He says she has good hand skills, are you going to stab me. She says that he knows she was following SY because he is following SY. Does she know that? He rubs his neck and says that this was not in his plans. What do you know about me? YJ says she knows his job, if SY knows about it, she will freak out. It is a mistake if you think you are the only one watching me.

She walks across their room to a window and says that she is not going to just leave the man alone that approaches SY. The background check, I can just give money and anyone can do it for me.

She walks up to him. Would you like to make a deal? If you keep things quiet, then I will also do it. Our goal is the same….Kim Yong-dae. SH tells her that he hates someone touching his bowl. She says you have to see whose bowl it is.

ES. The son and ES are still looking through the poems. But then the son finds something interesting and starts reading it. It is ES’s old poem. He hops up and starts reading it. ES tries to grab it, but then stops. He tells her that it isn’t any fun. Then he sits next to her and looks deeply at her….he leans in….but he wasn’t looking at her, he was looking at a poem, he found it. It is a man. Kim Dae Hyun.

SY. SH opens the door for SY. SY asks how his daughter is. He says she is much better, she can go back to school soon. SY asks if he has time in the morning.

JW. JW wakes up next to her husband, but she doesn’t look happy about it.

SY. It is a rush in the morning as SY gets ready. She tells her daughter that JS and her friend will be there soon. She reminds her to tell ajumma that she is sick with a headache and stomach ache. SY tells her this is good pretending.

HY. Still following TO around. She sees him exchanging business cards with a woman.

SY. She goes to the nanny’s house with SH and looks for the key. But SH knows how to pick the lock. He gets them inside but he tells her that the door wasn’t locked. They go inside.

While inside, SY starts looking around for anything she can find. SH looks around as well. He finds a picture and picks it up. It looks important, but he tells her that he didn’t find anything. he hides the photo in his pocket.

JW & ES. JW is shocked that ES had an affair with their teacher. ES said she didn’t’ want to hide it, she just didn’t tell them. JW says she doesn’t’ know what she is doing now. ES asks her what she wants to do. JW says that she doesn’t’ want to do anything with MG, but her husband wants to have a better relationship again. But she isn’t that happy. She suffered a lot by him. How can he just say to take everything back with one apology and one dish? Meanwhile, I became so close to MG. I don’t’ know what to do. ES asks what she wants to do. She did it with purpose, it wasn’t like he was your lover or something. The important thing is what you really want. Not as Teacher JW, or wife JW, what do you want as a human being?

CAR DEALERSHIP
SH. SH is at a car dealership. A man grabs a crowbar and pulls it over his head, he is about to swing it at SH, but then he stops right when he goes to him. SH asks him if it is fun for him. The man puts it away and says that it isn’t fun. This is the same man who tricked SY into giving him $1000.

SY cleans dishes and works at the café. but she thinks back to the little girl saying that the man was her husband.

SH. SH wants this con man to find out the relationship between Na Yoon-jung and SY. Conman asks SH if she is innocent. SH says she trusted everything they told her. She gave money so easily, she doesn’t’ know too much about her husband. So it was Kim Young-dae’s move, alone. SH thinks YD did the job with the nanny, JS. Conman asks what they will do with the money. They say that they will use the money regardless. Find it out quickly.

CHEF
DS shoots part of his TV show and then claps as they close it out. He jokes with his producer and says that he works hard every night, that is why he has dark circles. The PD tells him that they are preparing a special chef show about being pregnant until giving birth. So they want to have a cooking show about what is good when you are pregnant. He asks if he told his wife. He says they got back together. The PD thinks this is a good idea, it was his idea, but it would be bad if it goes to someone else. The chef says it isn’t just bad, he will kill the PD.

HY is at work and tries to apologize to MG about last night, but he just says, yes, yes, as if he understands, no need to explain, and walks away quickly before she can explain anything.

SANG HOON
The conman found out something very important. Not about the nannies child, it is something even more important. SH smiles as he hangs up. Then he thinks for a moment and gets out a little blue card shaped envelope.

ES. The son and ES meet with a man at a factory. They show him the poem. He says he doesn’t’ remember it, but his name is on it so it must be his. They ask him if he remembers the teacher? Someone killed him so the handwriting is important. He says he liked a girl back then, she had distinctive handwriting for Hiyeut (ㅎ) and he tried to copy it. The son asks who this person is. the man looks at ES.

They get back in the car. The son asks what ES will do, ES says she has to gather her friends together.

SY. SY opens her mailbox and receives the letter that was in the blue envelope. She is stunned. She walks into her house quietly. SY tells the kids to go to the playground, Ajusshi and his daughter will be there. the kids leave. SY shows JS the picture. JS says she can explain everything. SY tells her not to, if she wants to lie, just shut up and answer this. Sang-hee, is she YD’s daughter? JS says yes, she is really sorry. She didn’t’ know he was married until after she got pregnant.

He said he would take care of them, he was very nice to them. But 2 years ago he died and he didn’t’ know what to do to live. So she came to Korea to survive. At first, she just wanted to see her from afar. It also reminded her of what he told her. SY tells her to stop saying he is her father. What did he say? JS says that his daughter told her that she always wanted a younger sister. If her daughter meets SY’s daughter, then SY would take care of Sangyi as a real sister.

SY asks if it was this easy for her? JS says she is sorry, she suffered this much. SY asks how she can come there, how dare she. Don’t talk about my daughter. If you come in front of me one more time….don’t come in front of me anymore.

JS leaves while wiping her tears. SY destroys all her family picture frames. JS grabs Sunyi at the park and pulls her away. SY’s daughter wonders where she is going. SH watches her leave. he takes the kids back to SY’s place and tells them that he will take to SY for a bit. He walks up to SY and gives her a big hug as she cries uncontrollably into his chest. he holds her for a minute, but then she composes herself and he holds her face, lovingly. Then he kisses her, the kiss grows deeper. But SY stops it and apologizes. She asks him to leave.

He tells her that he will call her as she tries not to cry again. He slowly leaves.

HY. TO talks the woman at a café. She is very friendly with him. HY comes up to him and calls him Yobo. She tells the lady that she is his wife. Our child’s father worried about you a lot. The girl hops up and runs away. HY sits at the café and pulls out her phone. She asks if she can send this to his wife like this? She holds up the cell phone. He rolls his eyes and walks away.

HY follows him and wants to know why he isn’t answering. They get all the way to the garage. HY asks why he didn’t do anything while she touched all on him. He tells her to just send the photos to his wife. He walks off. She asks him if he really looks at her in contempt. that is why you dumped me ten years ago. Why are you making me confused?

He yells are her, he didn’t dump her! She slept with another man! And she told him like it was nothing, no big deal! She asks him if she should lie to him? She told him that she couldn’t’ settle down with one man. He says not being satisfied with one man and telling your boyfriend you are only with him, is that the same thing? You didn’t’ change at all, and you are screwing me up! ARGH! He screams so loudly and rests his hands on his knees in exhaustion and frustration.

HY looks at him differently at that moment. She pats him on the back. He tells her to leave him along. She looks him in the face and they both laugh.

Cut to the both of them sitting in bed together. They slowly undress each other. TO is very nervous at first, but then he tries to loosen up. She playfully taps his nose, which makes him laugh a little. Then they start to sleep together.

SY. SY is at the coffee shop. SH shows up and says it is late, can he have a cup of coffee?

HY. It is night now. TO leaves HY’s place, but he turns before he leaves and tells her bye-bye. She acts like it is nothing and waves bye-bye.

SY. SH tells her that Ah-hyun’s mother liked to make lists for everything; if things didn’t go by the list, she had a hard time. She even went by the list when they got divorced, everything was on a list, what to take with her or leave. He saw it all. The last thing on the list to leave with him was Ah-hyun’s name.

SY says Ah-hyun’s mom is still alive. She is still alive. So you can at least curse her or something. He asks her to tell him what happened to her. She says it is too late, she has to leave. But he tells her that he doesn’t’ know how much pain she is having, but she wants to help her, he likes her, he won’t hide it. He wants to be next to her, give him a chance.

A song plays as we see a montage of the four women, all in despair.

Can you just hug me tightly?
Can you just pat me nicely?
I don’t know if you know my heart or not, it doesn’t’ matter.
if you worry about me, can you just trust me?
If you love me, can you just listen to me?
I can’t convey it with a thousand words.

DS prepares a wonderful meal for his wife. They toast wine. But JW isn’t that happy. SY is on the floor in her place. HY grows sad on her bed. ES looks at a building. HY thinks on her bed, SY sleeps with her daughter in her own bed. She gets a text message: I hope you can smile a lot because of me. She sinks into the bed with her daughter.

THE NEXT DAY
The four women are together looking at the letter. they try to dissect the writing. JW wonders if Jae-hee is the teacher’s other mistress? JH is the candle shop owner. ES says that she wasn’t like a mistress. She says the important thing is the timing of when the candle shop had a fire. She died before teacher. So even though she wrote the letter, she is not the killer because she was already dead. We don’t know the killer, but we have common ground, the candle. the killer brought the candle. At first, I thought they used it as a murder weapon, but I think something is going on. I saw a lot of things that can be used as a weapon, but why take the candle? Maybe the killer wanted to have the candle? Maybe it was an accidental murder?

Flashback of the teacher coming home and getting hit by the candle as soon as he gets to his room.

They think that is why Both deaths are connected by this candle. Both people are related somehow. She will look into it a little further. JW says that she is hungry. Everyone is all like, huh?

SALON
Two women go into the salon, but no one is there. They grumble that she is never there. But behind the back is the lady singing a song and holding a lighter. She is just laying in her seat and looking at the ceiling while singing.

JW. JW gets to the teachers’ lounge. She sees a letter on her desk. She opens it and a USB falls out. She puts the USB in the computer. She opens it…..it has a video from another car of JW and MG having sex in the car! The video shows everything. JW closes the computer quickly.

THE PRESENT
The four women put the man into the trunk. They start digging a hole. But then they hear a loud bump. they wonder if anyone else heard it. They start digging again, but then they hear another bump and start screaming. They keep digging. There is a body in a plastic bag that is in the ground. It looks like SH? Maybe it moved? All the other women hop out, but SH sees the body, grabs her shovel, and digs it right into the face.

Fade Out

PREVIEW
SH gets closer and closer to SY. She also reciprocates the feeling.
JW tries to find out where the USB came from.

COMMENTS
I love the slow (yet fast) build of this show. Now we know that the candle shop owner is somehow connected to the teachers murder. We also know that the nanny is connected to SY’s missing husband and that SH is somehow tricking SY for some reason or another. He already used another person to extort $1000 from her and now he is looking into how the hair shop owner, YJ, is connected to SY.

I think we also know who the man is that they are burying. It looked a lot like SH to me, but perhaps it could be someone else? This drama is only 12 episodes so we are getting clues left and right as everything unfolds.

IMAGES

PREVIOUSLY RECAPPED
Mistress Recap Episode 3
Mistress Recap Episode 2
Mistress Recap Episode 1

Drama Milk contains ads and affiliate links that keep the lights on over here. The ads use cookies to aid in your viewing experience. If you like what you see then consider whitelisting us from your adblocking software so we can keep doing what we do!