All across the city we the viewers see advertisements featuring Nam Na Bi (played by the oily actress Yum Jung Ah. I'm sorry, but she was so oily in Royal Family and still is here. I just want to hose her down with Neutrogena.) She's a popular spokesperson for clothes, makeup, shot glasses, whatever. Her latest contract is with World Department Store.
Sitting in a van down by the river Na Bi is passed out underneath a blanket. Her people are trying to get her to wake up and sober up for her next appearance. She's contractually obligated to show up at the opera for a showing of Madame Butterfly. I must say, she does clean up well. In the audience, Na Bi struggles to keep her eyes open. (I'm with you there. I recall my one and only opera experience as being just as dull.) Na Bi loses the battle and falls asleep, her head landing on the shoulder of the man sitting next to her. He's World's marketing director, Lee Woo Jae (played by Park Yong Woo.) He tries to push her head up several times but she keeps coming back. Then she starts to snore. Loudly. (I'm still with you there. I wake myself up with my own snoring. That's pretty bad.)
The opera ends, the lights come up, and naturally the audience starts taking pictures with their cellphones of the sleeping actress and post them on the internet. Woo Jae returns to his office to see what damage has been done. He has his secretary give him a run down on just who Na Bi is, giving us viewers a look back on her career. Fifteen years ago she had a successful drama debut and won her one and only award for popularity. Since then her acting career has been a joke as she wears the same expression no matter what role she's playing. (I think we all know a few actors and actresses with the same problem.) Na Bi continues to be popular simply because of her outstanding fashion sense and being a staple in the tabloids for scandals. So basically she's famous for being famous.
Na Bi is desperate to be taken seriously as an actress, only to find in her next project she's not the lead but a supporting character. She goes to an Egyptian tomb to drink her sorrows away. As she's driving away, she gets stopped at a check point. Na Bi tries to bluff her way out of doing a breathalyzer test. At the end of their patience, the cops order her out of the car. She does what anyone would do -- she guns it! Now she's involved in a car chase with the police.
Mired so deep in scandal, Na Bi's sponsors drop her left and right. All her posters and billboards are taken down. The only people still beside her are her long-suffering mother and friend Yoon Seol Ah (played by Yoon Se Ah.) Seol Ah presents Na Bi with some new shoes and a plane ticket, advising her friend to go take a long vacation until this scandal blows over. On the plane Na Bi discovers she'll be sitting next to real estate developer Kim Jung Wook (played by Kim Sung Soo.) Time skip one year later to find Na Bi is married to Jung Wook, and I don't blame her a bit. He is rather hot.
Now get ready to be confused. I was. So much so that I seriously wondered if somehow I'd accidentally changed to a completely different drama.
A young geeky couple are out in the woods together at night when they come across a scary old woman who freaks them out. Oh, it's Grandma from Protect the Boss. Love her.
Cut to the Meji Beans Restaurant where the family that runs the place have just now discovered their strong box with all the money has disappeared from the cashier's booth. (Well maybe if you didn't leave your money out in a strong box on top of a table, you wouldn't have these problems.) The family immediately realizes that it was Grandma who took the box. She suffers from dementia and gets it into her head that she must hide the family's funds. Grandsons Kim Chang Ki (Kim Jung Hun) and Kim Baek Ki (Choi Min) have to go out into the woods and hunt Grandma down.
Once Grandma and the money are back safe and sound, Baek Ki blames Jung Wook for the reason why Grandma is so looney. This allows mom Lee Jung Ae (played by Kim Young Ae, another alum from Royal Family) to have a flashback. Jung Wook is her son from a previous relationship. Seventeen years ago he stole all the family's money so he could go live it up in the big city. The family was financially ruined and still haven't really recovered.
I must say, I'm not used to seeing Kim Young Ae this way. In Royal Family she was the Queen Bee (as in Bitch.) Now she's in the long suffering Korean mother role. Nor am I used to seeing Kim Jung Hun as anything but the Evil Dolt, but here he seems to be the much put upon oldest son role.
Now we whiplash back to Na Bi's part of the story. We find out Jung Wook has lied to her not only about his family (they're all dead) but even when his birthday is (which is now.) She's got this assistant (I think her name is Guk Hee) who is a refugee from North Korea. Guk Hee is saving up all her money in hopes of smuggling her mother out of the country. She's halfway to her goal of $20,000. Na Bi talks the girl into investing all her money into Jung Wook, promising the young girl she'll get five times back her investment. (The audience yells, "No! Don't do it!")
Back to the restaurant where the entire family is ... well, I'm not sure what they're doing. It has to do with large crocks outside. Later, Jung Ae discusses with her husband, Kim Byung Ho, the topic of arranging a marriage for son Chang Ki (who is a teacher, BTW.) Chang Ki doesn't seem too involved with the discussion one way or another. He leaves to go to school and is stopped by baby sister Sal Gu and her humongous glasses. She wants him to stop blaming Mom for Jung Wook's dastardly ways.
Speaking of dastardly ways, Jung Wook is starting to flop sweat over some of his investors, including politicians, being investigated for accepting bribes. This doesn't stop Na Bi from hitting the mall and shopping like there's no tomorrow.
Back at Bean Station. Jung Ae wants to go to Seoul to get Chang Ki a new suit for this marriage meeting. Knowing she's secretly suffering because it is Jung Wook's birthday and she has no idea where he is, Byung Ho gifts her with a pair of shoes he made himself. (He was planning to start his own shoe factory with the money Jung Wook made off with.)
Just to confuse us even more, the scene changes to World Company headquarters, where a mean old man with a cane terrorizes everyone. He's the president and is pissed off the board is having a meeting without him. The board wants to sell World Department Store because it is bleeding money. I take it Mean Old Man doesn't want to do this.
The scene changes yet again to what they call a charnal house, a term I really don't like using. It's where the Koreans store the ashes of the dearly departed. Yoon Seol Ah is coming in, carrying a bouquet of flowers, and is surprised to see Lee Woo Jae is there. And that's the last we see of them.
Back to the department store. Na Bi and Jung Ae fight over a tie, with Na Bi winning. Walking away in triumph, she runs into her husband (who is still flop sweating over not being able to find some Chairman Moon) and insists they go somewhere for lunch. Jung Ae is sitting down on some chairs to rest her aching feet when she spots Na Bi and Jung Wook going down the escalator nearby. Even though it has been seventeen years, Jung Ae easily recognizes her son. (Unlike other Kdrama mothers who never recognize their long lost children until the end of the show.) Jung Ae jumps up to go running after the couple, the camera making sure we see she has left her purse behind in her haste.
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