The mom's reason to keep her daughter mute was very stupid. And even if she went with it, she could have made…
Mum is selfish but can't be bothered to put in any effort herself.
She'll do anything to get the chairman to care about HER by abusing HJ. Even in ep 4's flashback, we can see the mother greedily picks through the buffet but asks Heejoo to act more "pathetic" (not sure if it is a translation error). Her rediculous logic only applies when she needs to control HJ but not on herself.
She probably just couldn't be bothered to come up with an elaborate plan that could bring back HJ's voice🤷♀️
He's being indifferent to her because in his POV she doesn't like him and she was coerced into the marriage by…
That's why I said his methods are wrong.
HeeJoo's main concern (aside from the corpse comment) was that he was treating her as if she didn't matter. She literally asked why does he treat her like she was invisible.
He is an ass but doesn't realize that he is being one because in his POV *he thought* that HeeJoo is indifferent to him/ dislikes him so he shouldn't burden her with his true feelings directly unless it's for her safety.
He doesn't realize what he does is abusive UNTIL the calls began. After that he did take steps to change his behavior.
The coffee scene- he didn't forbid her from drinking coffee. He told her to eat something FIRST. AGAIN his execution method is wrong but I wouldn't call it abusive 😅 If HJ still doesn't want to eat, she can just throw the platter. It would be more abusive if he actually watched her eat every mossel😅.
Form of care: He does let her have her way but it's very subtle that it's not noticable (specially if you already dislkke the ML.) If he is truly controlling why would he let her work when everybody in both families keep pressuring her to stop and he too is concerned about her safety? Rather than forcing her to stop, he found a solution where she can still work while he can keep her safe. There are many symbols in the drama too that hint on how the FL gets procedence most of the time (example their rooms).
Contract is not up for debate- it is controlling BUT we do not know if Hong In Ah also would have had to agree to the saame terms (if that were the case, it's more of a Baek family issue than just SE's issue).
*** It would have been nice if he did ask at least once "what do you want, honey?" but their family dynamics are messed up. I feel like there's more to the story they have yet to reveal since we know that at least at one point SE and HJ were in friendly terms when they were kids. So there must have been something that pushed them apart to the point where they treat eachother like strangers instead of people with a shared past.
ML is an unrelenting ass. I think I'll wait until this drama completes before I decide whether to pick it back…
He's being indifferent to her because in his POV she doesn't like him and she was coerced into the marriage by him and her mum. His constant reminders that they are not a couple is his way of saying "you are not obligated to force yourself to be my puppet".
Silently he communicates his feelings by always letting her get her way (he's more of an "Actions speak louder than words" type of guy.) HeeJoo just hasn't realized yet the control she has over him.🙊
His methods are definitely wrong but at least he tries to rectify them as soon as he finally realizes his mistakes.
The 2nd FL (Na Yu Ri) character feels unneccessary.
SFL is a plot device- it's her connection that allows Sa Eon to connect with HJ (when she's with the SML) without rousing suspicion to the outside world based on trailer bits/ scenes out so far since she is their mutual acquaintance.
At least until their marriage is revealed.
Also there is a high chance SML's past might be connected to Sa Eon's past so SFL again is his source to get more intel from her
Yes- essentially what's happening now are essentially consequences of past actions (not just HeeJu's miscalculation with playing with the kidnapper's phone)
The doctor can be too you remember Baek sa eon's mother said to him in the flashback that her son liked fishes…
Think the "i like fish" comment was to taunt Sa Eon (i.e. indirectly say "I like Hee Joo") since he gave this funny look at PSE when he poured her wine also.
(Makes you wonder why he was such a tease though since he must have met HJ before her marriage🤔)
On ep 2, and so far FL is not showing signs of being very bright. The ML has stated on multiple occasions that…
Think it was the last straw that broke the camel's back? She no longer cares and just needs to get out of her marriage? There's no more room for rationality (until she finally had to face the consequences of her actions in ep 3)?
Her life has always been terrible and to make things worse, even the guy she's loved for years and is supposed to depend on treats her like dirt.
It doesn't matter if he thought it was a scam since before she blackmailed him, Sa Eon's actions were filled with indifference or cruelty (in her pov).
(Guess it didn't help that in her pov, as soon as the kidnapper told him that HJ was with him, Sa Eon cut the call in a cold manner)
2 
She'll do anything to get the chairman to care about HER by abusing HJ. Even in ep 4's flashback, we can see the mother greedily picks through the buffet but asks Heejoo to act more "pathetic" (not sure if it is a translation error). Her rediculous logic only applies when she needs to control HJ but not on herself.
She probably just couldn't be bothered to come up with an elaborate plan that could bring back HJ's voice🤷♀️
HeeJoo's main concern (aside from the corpse comment) was that he was treating her as if she didn't matter. She literally asked why does he treat her like she was invisible.
He is an ass but doesn't realize that he is being one because in his POV *he thought* that HeeJoo is indifferent to him/ dislikes him so he shouldn't burden her with his true feelings directly unless it's for her safety.
He doesn't realize what he does is abusive UNTIL the calls began. After that he did take steps to change his behavior.
The coffee scene- he didn't forbid her from drinking coffee. He told her to eat something FIRST. AGAIN his execution method is wrong but I wouldn't call it abusive 😅 If HJ still doesn't want to eat, she can just throw the platter. It would be more abusive if he actually watched her eat every mossel😅.
Form of care:
He does let her have her way but it's very subtle that it's not noticable (specially if you already dislkke the ML.)
If he is truly controlling why would he let her work when everybody in both families keep pressuring her to stop and he too is concerned about her safety? Rather than forcing her to stop, he found a solution where she can still work while he can keep her safe. There are many symbols in the drama too that hint on how the FL gets procedence most of the time (example their rooms).
Contract is not up for debate- it is controlling BUT we do not know if Hong In Ah also would have had to agree to the saame terms (if that were the case, it's more of a Baek family issue than just SE's issue).
***
It would have been nice if he did ask at least once "what do you want, honey?" but their family dynamics are messed up.
I feel like there's more to the story they have yet to reveal since we know that at least at one point SE and HJ were in friendly terms when they were kids. So there must have been something that pushed them apart to the point where they treat eachother like strangers instead of people with a shared past.
She's more like a necessary evil depending on who you ask? Focussed on the greater good than the couple's happily ever after?
His constant reminders that they are not a couple is his way of saying "you are not obligated to force yourself to be my puppet".
Silently he communicates his feelings by always letting her get her way (he's more of an "Actions speak louder than words" type of guy.)
HeeJoo just hasn't realized yet the control she has over him.🙊
His methods are definitely wrong but at least he tries to rectify them as soon as he finally realizes his mistakes.
At least until their marriage is revealed.
Also there is a high chance SML's past might be connected to Sa Eon's past so SFL again is his source to get more intel from her
The angst is real🔥
As far as I know In A is supposed to be a good character (grey at the most). But it's hard to say atm 🙈
One tip- there's alot of hidden messages that sometimes can be missed but it's fun to notice them
If you are into Makjang, family centric, romance dramas, QOT would suit you.
If you are into time travel (and all its related elements since it covers multiple timeslips) with angsty/ romcom, Lovely Runner should work for you.
May be try both till ep 2 and see which suits you?
QoT mostly covers the MC's story after they got married and LR covers the MC's story from 19, 20, to 34 years of age.
And I seriously hope the drama can deliver till the end! Can you believe it's only been 2 weeks?🙈
(Makes you wonder why he was such a tease though since he must have met HJ before her marriage🤔)
Like in ep 2, it made so much sense for him to check out her injuries so gently whereas in the Novel, he almost traumatized her again 😅
Her life has always been terrible and to make things worse, even the guy she's loved for years and is supposed to depend on treats her like dirt.
It doesn't matter if he thought it was a scam since before she blackmailed him, Sa Eon's actions were filled with indifference or cruelty (in her pov).
(Guess it didn't help that in her pov, as soon as the kidnapper told him that HJ was with him, Sa Eon cut the call in a cold manner)